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316	https://historysoa.com/items/show/316	Index to The Author, Vol. 09 (1899)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Index+to+%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+%281899%29">Index to <em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 (1899)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988a</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>; <a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Index">Index</a>	1899-The-Author-9-index		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=78&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=The+Society+of+Authors">The Society of Authors</a>; <a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=78&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Horace+Cox">Horace Cox</a>																					<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1899">1899</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=4&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=London">London</a>				https://historysoa.com/files/original/4/316/1899-The-Author-9-index.pdf	publications, The Author
317	https://historysoa.com/items/show/317	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 01 (June 1898)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+01+%28June+1898%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 01 (June 1898)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1898-06-01-The-Author-9-1					1–28																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1898-06-01">1898-06-01</a>							1			18980601	^Tbe Butbor,<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. i.] JUNE i, 1898. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> <br /> THE Seoretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only.<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOB some years it has been the practice to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot;General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices, Ac, for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a olause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to carry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the samo allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give np American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both sides. It is now<br /> possible for an anthor to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Headers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those aaoount books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements and that all disaounta shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to th<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> B 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 2 (#14) ###############################################<br /> <br /> 2<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> I. Ij^VEEY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> ■ &quot;J advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advice<br /> sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, yon should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudulent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that you may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Society now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> E Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6s. 6i2. subscription for the year.<br /> The Editor is always glad to receive short papers and<br /> communications on all subjects connected with literature<br /> from members and others. Nothing can do more good to<br /> the Society than to make The Author complete, attractive,<br /> and interesting. Will those who are willing to aid in this<br /> work send their names and the special subjects on which<br /> they are willing to write?<br /> Communications for Tlie Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind, whether<br /> members of the Society or not, are invited to communicate<br /> to the Editor any points connected with their work whicb<br /> it would be advisable in the general interest to publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, Ac.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder.<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for five<br /> years to come, whatever his conduct, whether he was honest<br /> or dishonest? Of course they would not. Why then<br /> hesitate for a moment when they are asked to sign them-<br /> selves into literary bondage for three or five years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039;<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanced 1<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correct: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of course, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pooket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I. — The Position of British Authors in<br /> Germany.<br /> WITH reference to the statements that<br /> appeared in the newspapers in the<br /> Spring with regard to the International<br /> copyright question with Germany, the Secretary<br /> of State for Foreign Affairs has transmitted to<br /> the secretary of the Society of Authors the<br /> accompanying note, to be laid before the Society,<br /> which has been received from the German<br /> Ambassador relative to the position of British<br /> authors in Germany.<br /> rjxa<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 3 (#15) ###############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 3<br /> [Copy. Translation.]<br /> German Embassy, London, April 28, 1898.<br /> My Lord,—In your note of the 23rd ult., Your<br /> Excellency asked for information -on certain<br /> doubtful points in connection with the legal posi-<br /> tion of English authors as regards their right to<br /> protection against the reprinting or reproduction<br /> of their works, under the laws now in force in<br /> Germany.<br /> Your Excellency observed, in particular, that<br /> when the old Conventions ceased to have force in<br /> England, the same protection was continued there<br /> to German works as they had enjoyed while those<br /> conventions were in force. Similarly, in Germany<br /> properly acquired rights are protected quite as<br /> effectively, although in a different manner. For<br /> English works which, until Dec. 16 last, were<br /> protected in Germany under the old Conventions,<br /> have since enjoyed the protection given by the<br /> Agreement of Berne and the Supplementary Act<br /> of Paris. As the provisions of the new Conven-<br /> tions referred to are in some respects much<br /> more favourable, English interests are not in any<br /> way injured by this arrangement. Germany does<br /> not ask English authors or their heirs to go<br /> through any formalities in order to have the pro-<br /> tection of their works continued.<br /> The Imperial Decree of Nov. 29, 1897, and the<br /> notice in the Central-Blatt of 1898, page 85, only<br /> contain transitional provisions intended to protect<br /> the legitimate interests of German tradesmen<br /> against the retrospective force of the Agreement<br /> of Berne; they are based on the same principle as<br /> the reservation made in sect. 6 of the Inter-<br /> national Copyright Act, 1886: (&quot; Provided that,<br /> where any person has before the date of the<br /> publication of an Order in Council lawfully pro-<br /> duce any work in the United Kingdom,&quot; &amp;c.)<br /> I have the honour to communicate these<br /> explanations to Your Excellency in accordance<br /> with instructions received, and I beg to refer you,<br /> for information in detail, to the enclosed paper of<br /> replies to the questions contained in the enclosure<br /> to your note of the 23rd ult.<br /> My Government trust that these explanations<br /> will completely remove all the doubts which, as<br /> Your Excellency states, have arisen from the form<br /> of our withdrawal from the Copyright Conven-<br /> tions between Germany and England.<br /> I have, &amp;c.<br /> (Signed) P. Hatzfeldt.<br /> The Marquis of Salisbury, K.G., &amp;c.<br /> [Copy. Translation.]<br /> Replies to the Questions of Her Majesty&#039;s<br /> Government.<br /> 1. In Germany English authors who have<br /> hitherto been protected in accordance with the<br /> Conventions no longer in force are now protected<br /> in accordance with the Agreement of Berne.<br /> For, according to Article 14 and No. 4 of the<br /> Final Protocol, that Agreement is applicable to<br /> all works which have not yet become common<br /> property in their country of origin. The pro-<br /> tection of English works is not in any way<br /> diminished by the circumstance that the Agree-<br /> ment of Berne has taken the place of the old<br /> Conventions; on the contrary, the Agreement of<br /> Berne is in some respects more favourable to<br /> English works. In particular, the authors of the<br /> older English works also will in future be pro-<br /> tected against translations under Article 1, sect. 3,<br /> of the Paris Supplementary Act of May 4, 1896.<br /> It follows from what is stated above that, in<br /> consequence of the termination of the Conven-<br /> tions, English works have in some respects<br /> obtained a protection in Germany which they<br /> did not enjoy before. This circumstance made<br /> transition regulations necessary, for which No. 4,<br /> paragraph 3 of the Final Protocol of the Agree-<br /> ment of Berne was taken as a basis. It is<br /> possible that some one in Germany may, while<br /> the old Conventions were in force, have made use<br /> of, or been about to make use of, an English<br /> work for purposes of gain, quite legally, because,<br /> as the law then stood, there was no prohibition.<br /> One case is of practical importance. A certain<br /> English work which was not protected, or was no<br /> longer protected, against translation in Germany,<br /> was translated without the sanction of the author<br /> or his representative. According to general prin-<br /> ciples, which are followed in Great Britain as well<br /> as in other countries, a change in the law, that is<br /> in this case the newly introduced protection of<br /> English works against translation, must not have<br /> the effect of preventing interested parties in<br /> Germany from benefiting by arrangements law-<br /> fully made by them. Steps have, therefore, been<br /> taken to make it lawful within certain limits for<br /> the parties concerned to do certain things which<br /> it was lawful for them to do until the termination<br /> of the Conventions, but which, if special regula-<br /> tions had not been made, would have been an in-<br /> fringement of the rights of English authors. In<br /> particular, it was necessary, in view of the exten-<br /> sion of the protection against translations, to give<br /> permission for the distribution of translations of<br /> old English works which were lawfully made to<br /> continue. The sole object of the Imperial Decree<br /> of November 29,1897 {Imperial Gazette, No. 787)<br /> and the Notice of February3,1898 {Central-Blatt,<br /> No. 85) was to meet these cases.<br /> 2. According to the regulations referred to<br /> above, the distribution and sale of impressions of<br /> an English work lawfully made are allowed,<br /> although the work now enjoys in Germany the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 4 (#16) ###############################################<br /> <br /> 4<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> protection of the Agreement of Berne, in conse-<br /> quence of the termination of the Conventions.<br /> The copies must, however, have been stamped<br /> before March 31 of this year. If this condition<br /> has not been complied with the distribution of<br /> the copies is illegal; if the rule is infringed the<br /> copies are confiscated, and the persons responsible<br /> are punished if the infraction is wilful or the<br /> result of carelessness. Similarly, the employment<br /> of moulds, plates,. &amp;c., which were in existence<br /> before the termination of the Conventions will be<br /> considered to be a reprinting or illegal reproduc-<br /> tion of the protected English work, unless such<br /> moulds, plates, &amp;c., have been stamped before<br /> March 31 of this year.<br /> The authors of works which have already<br /> obtained protection in Germany under the Con-<br /> ventions which are no longer in force enjoy the<br /> rights conferred by the Agreement of Berne. The<br /> date (Dec. 31, 1901) mentioned in section 3 of<br /> the notice of Feb. 3, 1898, has nothing to do with<br /> such cases; that date cannot affect any works<br /> except such as were not protected at all in<br /> Germany by the old Conventions. In cases in<br /> which works of this kind have now obtained pro-<br /> tection the protection is limited, under section 1,<br /> No. 1, of the Imperial Decree of Nov. 29, 1897,<br /> but this limitation comes to an end on Dec. 31,<br /> 1901.<br /> 3. So far as English works have already been<br /> protected in Germany under the Agreement of<br /> Berne, no change has taken place. The new<br /> Regulations only deal with the application of the<br /> Agreement of Berne to English works which have<br /> obtained the protection of the Agreement only in<br /> consequence of the termination of the old Conven-<br /> tions.<br /> 4. As stated under 1, the Agreement of Berne<br /> is now applied automatically in the case of all<br /> English works which were protected in Germany<br /> under the late treaties; its retrospective force is<br /> only limited by the transition provisions referred<br /> to above.<br /> 5. As appears from what has gone before,<br /> stamping is not a condition on which the protec-<br /> tion of English works in Germany is made to<br /> depend. On the contrary, it is only prescribed<br /> for cases where, in accordance with the transition<br /> provisions, persons wish to continue to make use<br /> of old copies or plates, Ac., without the sanction<br /> of those who possess the authors&#039; rights over<br /> the English works concerned. Accordingly, the<br /> stamping was not to be carried out by the English<br /> authors or their heirs, but by the Germans inte-<br /> rested. Under these circumstances it does not<br /> appear how the English parties would benefit<br /> by an extension of the period allowed for<br /> stamping.<br /> 6. Stamping is provided for in the case of<br /> copies and plates, &amp;c., which are in the possession<br /> of Germans, and it was therefore laid down that<br /> it was to be carried out in Germany. The<br /> measure does not extend to copies and plates, &amp;c.,<br /> which have been produced in Great Britain by<br /> persons who have authors&#039; rights over English<br /> works. There could therefore be no question of<br /> sending the objects from England to Germany<br /> and back. ^<br /> II.—The Cost of Production.<br /> The book in question contains 24 sheets at<br /> 16 pages the sheet, or 384 pages in all, including<br /> 8 pages of preliminary matter and about 40 illus-<br /> trations in text. The type is pica—320 words to<br /> a page. The binding is quite plain cloth.<br /> The estimates obtained were from three town<br /> houses and one country house. The variations<br /> were very great.<br /> Thus the composition was estimated at 42*.,<br /> 39*., 24.?., and 19*. respectively.<br /> The printing for 2000 copies was estimated at<br /> 17s. 6d., 30*. 0ff/., and 18*. respectively, and by<br /> the fourth house, for 1000 copies, at 10*.<br /> The paper for 2000 copies, 174&#039;., 12s. 6d., 7*. yd.,<br /> and 8*. 6d. a sheet.<br /> The binding—crown 8vo.—was put at 6d. and<br /> 6\d. The cost finally arrived at was 6d.<br /> There were certain notes and preliminary matter<br /> in different type, and there were many illustra-<br /> tions in the text, which ran up the price of the<br /> book. Without the illustrations the 2000 copies<br /> were bound to cost as nearly as possible .£150,<br /> or is. 6d. a copy—without advertising.<br /> In this case there are circumstances which,<br /> required that the expense of advertising should be<br /> very little: in other words, the announcement of<br /> the book could be made by other channels than<br /> those of the journals and newspapers.<br /> The &quot;Cost of Production&quot; (seep. 47) gives the<br /> following figures:—<br /> £. s. d.<br /> Composition, 24 sheets at £1 ge 34 16 o<br /> Printing, 24 sheets, (per 1000 copies),<br /> say 15* 18 o o<br /> Paper, at £2 16s. a sheet 67 4 o<br /> Binding at gd 75 o o<br /> 195 o o<br /> The following table presents the figures for<br /> 2000 copies :—<br /> Society&#039;s<br /> First<br /> Second<br /> Third<br /> Fourth<br /> Account<br /> House.<br /> House.<br /> House.<br /> House.<br /> £. s. d.<br /> £. b. d.<br /> £. s. d.<br /> £. s. d.<br /> S. b. d.<br /> 34 16 0<br /> 50 12 0<br /> 32 8 0<br /> 28 16 0<br /> 54 12 0<br /> 18 0 0<br /> ,20 17 0<br /> 38 8 0<br /> 21 12 0<br /> •<br /> «7 4 0<br /> &quot;,!) 12 0<br /> 36 0 0<br /> 40 18 0<br /> 44 4 0<br /> 75 0 0<br /> 54 0 0<br /> 57 4 0<br /> 50 0 0<br /> * Estimate for 1000 copirs, £13; for 2000, would be about £20.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 5 (#17) ###############################################<br /> <br /> THE , AUTHOR.<br /> 5<br /> III.—-West of England Booksellers.<br /> At a meeting of booksellers which took place<br /> at Exeter on May 5, when it was decided to<br /> amalgamate the trade in the West, the following<br /> resolution was adopted:—<br /> That this meeting of West of England Booksellers, while<br /> regretting that the scheme submitted last year by the<br /> Publishers&#039; Association to the Authors&#039; Society has not been<br /> adopted, hereby approves of the principles contained in the<br /> new scheme recently submitted to the Council of the<br /> Publifhers&#039; Association.<br /> <br /> ANNUAL DINNER.<br /> THE annual dinner of the Society of Authors<br /> took place at the Holborn Restaurant, on<br /> Monday, May 2, and was altogether a very<br /> successful function.<br /> The Bishop of London took the chair, and was<br /> supported by two hundred members of the Society<br /> and their distinguished guests.<br /> The toasts of the evening were limited to<br /> four:—&quot;The Queen,&quot; &quot;The Society,&quot; &quot;The<br /> Guests,&quot; and &quot; The Chairman.&quot;<br /> After the Bishop had proposed the health of<br /> the Queen he proposed the prosperity of the<br /> Society of Authors in a very apt and amusing<br /> speech. He stated that he thought that the use<br /> of after-dinner speeches was merely to give the<br /> people in the room something to talk about. He<br /> stated that authors, in spite of all that had been<br /> said about them, were a very harmless class of<br /> the community. To show that that truth was<br /> permeating the youthful mind his lordship told a<br /> little story of a boy who wished to enter the<br /> Navy. When the lad heard his father speak of<br /> the risks of the present war he assumed a pen-<br /> sive air and said he did not think he would go<br /> into the Navy after all. He would be a poet—it<br /> was less dangerous. There was a little moral in<br /> all this, as you would expect. In nothing had<br /> the harmlessness of authors been more displayed,<br /> until recent times, than in their very slight efforts<br /> towards unity for their own interests. They<br /> had long been content to accept what might be<br /> offered them. They had, however, found defen-<br /> ders, and authors owed a debt of gratitude to Sir<br /> Martin Conway and Sir Walter Besant for their<br /> efforts on behalf of the craft. (Cheers.) A<br /> society which had for its object the securing of<br /> due remuneration for labour was one which<br /> would command the sympathy of all Englishmen.<br /> The Society had done good in this direction, and<br /> also in the giving of good advice to literary<br /> aspirants. It was this function of the Society<br /> which was specially valuable to the community.<br /> The business of the Society had been con-<br /> ducted with a practical spirit which would; do<br /> credit to the Stock Exchange. (Hear, hear.)<br /> The time might come when publishers would<br /> compete for the productions of authors and be<br /> willing to pay any price for them, but until that<br /> happy period arrived all literary aspirants would<br /> do well to avail themselves of the services of the!<br /> Society. (Cheers.)<br /> Sir Martin Conway, Chairman of the Society<br /> for the current year, then made a speech in reply*<br /> He regretted that Lord Roberts was not discharg-,<br /> ing the duty which fell to his lot. He made an<br /> official statement with regard to the business that<br /> the Society had been carrying on through the<br /> current year, and mentioned the fact that two<br /> Copyright Bills were at present before Parlia-<br /> ment. He, however, remarked that neither of<br /> them, he was afraid, would be likely to pass at<br /> present, but the justice which they were designed<br /> to work would, he hoped, be before long realised!<br /> Mr. Sidney Lee, the editor of the Dictionary of<br /> National Biography, in a very apt speech then<br /> proposed the health of the guests, mentioning<br /> them in turn, especially referring to the American<br /> Ambassador, who was present that evening not<br /> only as representing seventy millions of English<br /> readers, but as also representing the literature of<br /> a great country.<br /> The toast was coupled with the name of Lord<br /> Welby, who made an appropriate reply.<br /> Mr. Anthony Hope Hawkins proposed the<br /> health of the Chairman, and, after the Bishop&#039;s<br /> reply, the company . adjourned to another room,<br /> where a conversazione was held until a late hour.<br /> ME. BRYCE ON THE BOOK TRADE.<br /> MR. JAMES BRYCE, M.P., presided at the<br /> annual dinner in connection with the<br /> BookselL rs&#039; Provident Institution, held<br /> in the Holborn Pestaurant on May 7, and pro-<br /> posed the toast of &quot;Literature.&quot; Many ways,<br /> he said, were suggested by which the booksellers<br /> might be saved, and one was that the number of<br /> books should be curtailed, as there were many<br /> which the country did not consume. The litera-<br /> ture of a country was the best proof of the posi-<br /> tion and learning in that country; and the test<br /> of the intellectual level of a town was to be found<br /> in the number and contents of the shelves of the<br /> booksel&#039;ers&#039; shops. No persons could form - so<br /> good an idea of what the intellectual condition of<br /> the people was as those who distributed the<br /> books. Booksellers could thus form a lively and<br /> more direct idea of what the people thought and<br /> what kind of taste should be addressed to them.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 6 (#18) ###############################################<br /> <br /> 6<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> He had found no persons who were such capable<br /> critics as those who sold books. Booksellers<br /> could often influence the taste of tbeir customers<br /> by advising what to buy, and selling good books.<br /> They were always in a position to impart valuable<br /> instruction to those who bought books. The<br /> plethora of books was becoming a serious<br /> difficulty to booksellers. They did not know<br /> what to put in stock, or how to select the books<br /> they could recommend. It had been suggested<br /> that a penal law should be enacted against the<br /> multiplication of books. A difficulty would<br /> probably then arise with regard to the respective<br /> liability of author and publisher—perhaps only<br /> the author should be punished. They must have<br /> all remarked how very mild the criticisms had<br /> become in our day; perhaps that in a way<br /> accounted for the number of books issued. With<br /> all this plethora of books they must remember<br /> that the publication of newspapers and magazines<br /> was going on with increasing vehemence. But<br /> people read newspapers in a totally different<br /> spirit to what they read books. When they<br /> read a newspaper, they picked the thing up<br /> and threw it away when it was done with; but<br /> they read a book with a view of assimilating the<br /> subject with which it dealt, while they gave up<br /> the habit of bringing the mind to bear upon<br /> what they read in newspapers. This habit<br /> reacted upon the way they now regarded a<br /> thoughtful book. Was it possible to do anything<br /> to stem the tide, and enable books to hold their<br /> ground better as against newspapers and maga-<br /> zines? He thought their friends, the publishers,<br /> should try publishing books somewhat cheaper.<br /> That might be a revolutionary proposition; and<br /> they might be told that there was a lion in the<br /> path, namely, the circulating library. In his<br /> opinion, the circulating library was an enemy to<br /> all; and they must try to fight it. The issue of<br /> cheap books could not be fairly said to have been<br /> tried until some work by a well-known and<br /> popular author was taken, and the first edition<br /> published in a cheap form. The first generation<br /> of authors might be losers, but let the heroic<br /> suffer. He ventured to believe that the experi-<br /> ment would succeed, and there would be consola-<br /> tion to the author in knowing that he had more<br /> readers than at present. A large proportion of<br /> the best books were produced without any idea<br /> of profit being derived from them. If they took<br /> the best thousand books, very few of them would<br /> not have been written, even if the author had<br /> known beforehand that he was not going to<br /> get more than he actually did. If publishers<br /> made books cheaper, they would be bought<br /> to be read and kept, and would serve the<br /> next generation. This, he believed, would do a<br /> great deal for the inextinguishable well-being and<br /> the literary level of our country. They would be<br /> able to develope and build up the taste of the<br /> people. There was, perhaps, too great a tendency<br /> in the present day to look after material great-<br /> ness, and men&#039;s minds were led away from<br /> literature. They might become proud of their<br /> gold, but their was nothing which gold could<br /> produce which could furnish them with so much<br /> reason for pride as the literature of England.<br /> He believed that, in the long run, a nation would<br /> be judged by her literature; that alone could pro-<br /> duce a strong nation, a high-souled nation, and<br /> it was only such a nation that could produce and<br /> read a splendid literature.<br /> THE ROYAL LITERARY FUND.<br /> THE Duke of Devonshire was the chairman<br /> of this year&#039;s anniversary dinner (the 108th)<br /> of the Royal Literary Fund, which took<br /> place on the 17th ult., at the Hotel Métropole, and<br /> was attended by a distinguished company.<br /> The Chairman, in giving &quot;Prosperity to the<br /> Royal Literary Fund,&quot; with which he coupled the<br /> name of Lord Crewe, the president of the corpo-<br /> ration, made at the outset of his remarks a refer-<br /> ence to Mr. Gladstone&#039;s connection with the fund:<br /> that great man, he said, eminent as an author<br /> and still more so as a statesman, whose career<br /> they all regretted to know was now rapidly<br /> approaching its end. They could only express<br /> their admiration, respect, and sympathy for that<br /> illustrious Englishman, and it would be a melan-<br /> choly satisfaction if those sentiments could be made<br /> known to the dying statesman. Proceeding, the<br /> Duke of Devonshire said he could only attribute<br /> his being called upon to preside over that dinner<br /> to his position as Chancellor of the University<br /> of Cambridge and as President of the Council.<br /> From that point of view he was tempted to ask<br /> the elementary question, Why should the writing<br /> of books be encouraged and the demand for<br /> modern literature be stimulated ¥ But a clear<br /> and broad distinction might be drawn between<br /> science on the one hand and art and literature on<br /> the other. It might be that modern brains were<br /> better than those of old times, but science at<br /> least was progressive, and new methods and in-<br /> creased certitude and accuracy had assuredly<br /> been obtained. The knowledge* of the forces of<br /> nature was ever increasing, and the limits of the<br /> science of the future could by no forecast be<br /> determined. The same thing probably could not<br /> be said of literature and art, and it might be<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 7 (#19) ###############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 7<br /> that we were no further than the men of 2000<br /> years ago. In charm of style it might be that<br /> we were not superior to the writers of antiquity,<br /> or even to our immediate predecessors. It might<br /> then be asked why we should seek to divert men<br /> to a comparatively barren field instead of the<br /> more productive one of science. The answer<br /> might, perhaps, be found in the sentence that<br /> man does not live by bread alone or by knowledge<br /> alone. The speculation as to the destinies and<br /> life of nations was more interesting, it might be,<br /> than any scientific research. We should try to<br /> realise what would be the condition of things if<br /> men should desist from writing and depend on<br /> the mental nutriment supplied by the past. If<br /> modern literature did not produce the highest<br /> masterpieces, it at least spoke to us in our own<br /> language and expressed our own ideas. The age<br /> or nation which should cease to produce books<br /> would soon lose the faculty of admiration of the<br /> past; and the training which enabled us to<br /> appreciate would urge to the effort of emula-<br /> tion. It was not in the direction of the<br /> extinction of authorship, then, that intellectual<br /> ,excellence was to be obtained. The object of the<br /> Society was to secure to authors as a class the<br /> benefits which under the old system of private<br /> patronage were enjoyed by the few favoured ones<br /> of the great. Publishers now to some extent<br /> took the place of patrons, and to neither, perhaps,<br /> was Byron&#039;s gibe applicable that either of them<br /> was a Barabbas. Hobbes and Locke might<br /> never have been what they were had it not been<br /> for the patron. The relation of Lord Shaftes-<br /> bury and Locke must have led to the increase of<br /> political tolerance and liberality of thought.<br /> Patronage, however, had gone. It had unques-<br /> tionably done good work to an author here and<br /> there, but it had never given strength and dignity<br /> to a profession. This Society, which had to some<br /> extent succeeded to that office, might claim to<br /> have perpetuated the advantages, and to have<br /> avoided the evils of private patronage.<br /> THE HISTORY OP THE BLACKWOOD<br /> PUBLISHING HOUSE *<br /> WILLIAM BLACKWOOD, the founder of<br /> the publishing house, learned book-<br /> selling in his native city of Edinburgh,<br /> picked up experience in Glasgow and then in<br /> London, and returning to the Scottish capital in<br /> * &quot; William Blackwood and Hia Sons: Their Magazine<br /> and Friends.&quot; By Mrs. Oliphant. (Edinburgh and<br /> London: W. Blackwood and Sons.)<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> 1804 (being then twenty-eight years of age),<br /> started business on his own account. He speedily<br /> won a reputation &quot; as a safe and steady man of<br /> business, not given to flights of fancy, but full of<br /> enthusiasm for literature.&quot; The first book he<br /> published was his own catalogue—the compiling<br /> of catalogues was an important part of book-<br /> selling in those days, when old books were kept<br /> for sale as well as new ones issued.<br /> This notice of Mrs. Oliphant&#039;s last book has<br /> been in type for some time, but pressure upon<br /> our limited space has kept it out. The book is<br /> remarkable in the first place as showing how a<br /> writer, even of the present day, when writers are<br /> by no means so dependent on the publisher as<br /> they were, may be dominated by a publishing<br /> house as by the hand of fate. The distinguished<br /> author who wrote this history did so with a<br /> certain breathless admiration which is to us<br /> inconceivable. Mrs. Oliphant says that the first<br /> Blackwood was an enthusiast for literature.<br /> Very likely. Most successful publishers are.<br /> The more successful, the more enthusiastic. The<br /> few who have become bankrupt are not so enthu-<br /> siastic. The book, however, is also remarkable<br /> for certain side lights upon men of letters during<br /> the first half of the century.<br /> Murray and Blackwood.—The Magazine.<br /> In 1811 Blackwood became agent of John<br /> Murray. &quot;You have the happiness of making<br /> publishing a liberal profession,&quot; he wrote to<br /> Murray, who was treating with Byron about this<br /> time, &quot;and not a mere business of pence. This I<br /> consider one of the greatest privileges we have in<br /> our business.&quot; Again, in a letter the London<br /> publisher writes to his Edinburgh representative<br /> about the magazine, there is an interesting light<br /> upon what was the ideal for a magazine of that<br /> day:—&quot; Let us take public estimation by assault,<br /> by the irresistible effect of talent employed on<br /> subjects that are interesting, and above all, I say<br /> to collect information on passing events. Our<br /> editors are totally mistaken in thinking that this<br /> consists in laborious essays. These are very good<br /> as accessories, but the flesh and blood and bones<br /> is information. That will make the public eager<br /> to get us at the end of every month.&quot; Blackwood<br /> was able, through the agency of James Ballantyne,<br /> to place Scott&#039;s &quot;Tales of a Landlord&quot; in the<br /> offer of the London publisher. A quarrel arose<br /> between the Great Unknown and Blackwood,<br /> partly owing to the latter&#039;s habit of suggest-<br /> ing improvements upon the later scenes in<br /> Scott&#039;s work. In 1817 the Edinburgh Monthly<br /> Magazine was begun under the joint editorship<br /> of Pringle and Cleghorn, but it did not realise<br /> Blackwood&#039;s expectations, and after No. 6 a<br /> c<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 8 (#20) ###############################################<br /> <br /> 8<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> new series was commenced, with Blackwood<br /> as his own editor. In the first number<br /> appeared the famous &quot; Chaldee Manuscript,&quot; said<br /> to have been concocted by Wilson, Lockhart, and<br /> others, although Hogg in after years claimed the<br /> greater share in it. Blackwood was designated<br /> in the article &quot;the man clothed in plain apparel,&quot;<br /> Lockhart was &quot;the Scorpion which delighteth to<br /> sting the faces of men.&quot;<br /> &quot;Don Juan&quot; and the Scotch Editor.<br /> Blackwood stuck at &quot;Don Juan,&quot; and broke<br /> with Murray over it. His reasons are given in a<br /> letter he wrote to Maginn:—&quot; I do most cordially<br /> agree with you that I deserve quizzing for<br /> refusing to sell&#039; Don Juan,&#039; and should not be<br /> spared in the article. The only apology I have<br /> to offer to you is this, that it proceeded partly<br /> from pique and partly from principle. When<br /> the book was published by Murray, I was just on<br /> the point of breaking with him. I had not had<br /> a letter from him for some months. He sent me<br /> copies of the book per mail, without either letter<br /> or invoice, so that when I received them I was<br /> not disposed to read it with favourable eye. I<br /> did read it, and I declare solemnly to you, much<br /> as I admired the talent and genius displayed in<br /> it, I never in my life was so filled with utter<br /> disgust. It was not the grossness or black-<br /> guardism which struck me, but it was the vile,<br /> heartless, and cold-blooded way in which this<br /> fiend attempted to degrade every tender and<br /> sacred feeling of the human heart. I felt such a<br /> revolting at the whole book after I had finished<br /> it, that I was glad of the excuse I had from Mr.<br /> Murray not writing me, for refusing to sell it.&quot;<br /> Idolatry of Wilson.<br /> Wilson was almost a religion in Blackwood&#039;s.<br /> Mrs. Oliphant quotes the following letter from<br /> Landor to the publisher:—&quot; Pray do me the<br /> favour to inform your compositor that if ever<br /> again he has the impudence and audacity to alter<br /> a let&#039;er or a point of my writings he shall see no<br /> more of them! In the first page he has put the<br /> name of Wilson after those of Homer, Shake-<br /> speare, and Dante. Now, I never have spoken<br /> otherwise of Wilson than as a man of varied and<br /> great genius; but if I mentioned him with Dante<br /> and Shakespeare, I not only should compare<br /> dissimilars, but bring his just claims into ques-<br /> tion. I believe he himself would be the very first<br /> to blame my imprudence.&quot;<br /> De Quincey&#039;s Humour.<br /> De Quincey had not yet become a contributor<br /> to the magazine when he wrote the following<br /> letter to Blackwood :—&quot; If Wilson and Lockhart<br /> do not put themselves forward for the magazine,<br /> I foresee that the entire weight of supporting it<br /> must rest on my shoulders. I see clearly that I<br /> must be its Atlas. For excepting our friend<br /> Gillies&#039;s translation (from a cursed dull thing<br /> though), and excepting that spirited political<br /> article at the end, a more dreary collection of<br /> dulness and royal stupidity never did this world<br /> see gathered together than the December number<br /> exhibits. Positively it would sink any work in<br /> the world. No, no! I see clearly that I must<br /> write it all myself—except one sheet which I will<br /> leave to Gillies, and a few pp. to the other man.&quot;<br /> The editor took this seriously, and replied that he<br /> could only excuse it &quot;by supposing that you were<br /> hardly awake when you wrote it. When I apply<br /> to you to be the Atlas of my magazine, it will be<br /> time enough for you to undertake the burthen.<br /> And in the meantime, I must beg leave to say<br /> that if you cannot send me anything better than<br /> the &#039; English Lakes,&#039; it will be quite unnecessary<br /> for you to give yourself any further trouble about<br /> the magazine.&quot;<br /> Thackeray on Himself.<br /> Thackeray was a &quot;rejected contributor&quot; of<br /> Blackwood&#039;s. The Rev. James White, of Bon-<br /> church, introduced him to the firm. &quot;He is<br /> the cleverest man of all the London writers, I<br /> think—his name is Thackeray ; a gentleman, a<br /> Cambridge man.&quot; &quot;He is shy, I suppose, for he<br /> said he wished you would invite him to contri-<br /> bute. He is also literary reviewer in the Times.&quot;<br /> The invitation was not forthcoming, and<br /> Thackeray at length made the following offer :—<br /> &quot;Some years back you used to have pleasant<br /> papers in Blackwood called &#039;The World we Live<br /> in.&#039; I should be glad to do something of a like<br /> nature, if you are disposed to accept my contri-<br /> butions. No politics, as much fun and satire as<br /> I can muster, literary lath (sie) and criticism of<br /> a spicy nature, and general gossip. I belong to<br /> a couple of clubs in this village, and can get<br /> together plenty of rambling stuff. For instance<br /> for next month Courvoisier&#039;s hanging (I&#039;ll go on<br /> purpose), strictures on C. Phillip&#039;s speech, the<br /> London Library, Tom Carlyle and the Times,<br /> Bunn&#039;s new book, of which great fun may be<br /> made, and an account of Willis that may be racy<br /> enough. H the project smiles upon you, as the<br /> French say, please write me word. I can&#039;t afford<br /> to begin and send the MSS. in advance, for if you<br /> shouldn&#039;t approve the design my labour would be<br /> wasted, as the article would be written for your<br /> special readers, and no good next month.&quot;<br /> &quot;G. E. is such a Timid Fellow.&quot;<br /> &quot;I am happy to say that I think your friend&#039;s<br /> reminiscences will do,&quot; wrote John Blackwood to<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 9 (#21) ###############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 9<br /> George Henry Lewes, with reference to &quot;Scenes<br /> from Clerical Life.&quot; He proceeded to criticise<br /> some points in &quot;Amos Barton,&quot; and wound up<br /> by saying that, if the author was a new writer, he<br /> begged to congratulate him on being worthy of<br /> the honours of print and pay. So well did George<br /> Eliot conceal her identity, that she actually met<br /> and entertained one of the brothers Blackwood<br /> without disclosing the secret. The following<br /> incident is not dated, but this is Major Black-<br /> wood&#039;s letter after a visit to the Lewes pair:—&quot; I<br /> have just returned from Richmond. G. E. did<br /> not show; he is such a timid fellow, Lewes said.<br /> He was very pleasant, and talked in a very hand-<br /> some way of his connection with us, saying of all<br /> editors ever he had to do with—and he had to do<br /> with many—you and Lord Jeffrey were the most<br /> agreeable. I saw a Mrs. Lewes.&quot; Only when an<br /> impostor claimed the authorship of &quot; Adam Bede&quot;<br /> did George Eliot reveal her identity to the<br /> publisher.<br /> The meddling of the proof reader called for a<br /> protest from George Eliot:—&quot; The printer&#039;s reader<br /> made a correction after I saw the proof, and,<br /> though he may sometimes do so with advantage<br /> (as I am very liable to overlook mistakes), I in<br /> this case particularly object to his alteration, and<br /> I mention it in order to request that it may not<br /> occur again. He has everywhere substituted the<br /> form &#039;the Misses So-and-So&#039; for the &#039;Miss So-<br /> and So&#039;s,&#039; a form which in England is confiued to<br /> public announcements, to the backs of letters, and<br /> to the conversation of school-mistresses. This is<br /> not the conversational English of good society,<br /> and causes the most disagreeable jolt in an easy<br /> style of narrative or description.&quot;<br /> William Blackwood, the founder, died in 1833,<br /> and his sons succeeded. Letters from Bramwell<br /> Bronte bear witness that Robert Blackwood was<br /> scant in his sympathy with the humours of<br /> authors, no notice being taken of Bronte&#039;s letters<br /> or poetry. On the death of Alexander, and<br /> Robert&#039;s health being delicate, Major William<br /> Blackwood was taken into the business to assist<br /> John. The history of the house is brought down<br /> to 1861 by Mrs. Oliphant&#039;s work. A third<br /> volume is to appear later from another hand.<br /> •:».&lt;-<br /> THE NEW PATRON.<br /> (See page 7.)<br /> <br /> (HE Muse rose to welcome her visitor. &quot;I<br /> fear,&quot; she said, &quot;that I have not the<br /> honour—&quot;<br /> &quot;I am your new Patron,&quot; said her visitor,<br /> roughly. &quot;Can&#039;t you read the papers? Didn&#039;t<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> you read that the Duke of Devonshire Baid I was<br /> your Patron?&quot;<br /> &quot;My new Patron? I have had so many.<br /> Princes and nobles and great ladies have been my<br /> Patrons in the past. Scholars and artists and<br /> persons of culture have been my Patrons in late<br /> times. But who are you?&quot;<br /> &quot;I say that I am your new Patron.&quot;<br /> &quot;Are you a Prince or a great noble?&quot;<br /> &quot;No. I am a publisher.&quot;<br /> &quot;What is a publisher?&quot; She turned upan<br /> him eyes that compelled the truth.<br /> &quot;It is a middleman,&quot; he replied, surlily, &quot;who<br /> sells the Muse&#039;s b.oks to the bookseller, and puts<br /> most of the money in his own pocket.&quot;<br /> &quot;But you said that you are my Patron.&quot;<br /> &quot;So I am. And your master as well. What<br /> money have you? Hand it over. I will keep it<br /> for you. None? Then set to work. Come, there<br /> must be no idling. You must set to work and at<br /> once. I shall call to-morrow to know how you<br /> are getting on. I am your new Patron.<br /> Remember that.&quot;<br /> Next day he called again. &quot;Well, where is<br /> the work? You&#039;ve had time to write a dozen<br /> poems since yesterday.&quot;<br /> &quot;I have done nothing.&quot;<br /> &quot;Nothing? What? You&#039;ve wasted all that<br /> time? Why, your time is my money. You&#039;ve<br /> been wasting my money! Nothing?&quot;<br /> &quot;I have been walking in the meadows listening<br /> to the birds and watching the flight of the<br /> clouds.&quot;<br /> &quot;Oh! This won&#039;t do, you know, at all. This<br /> will never do. I only became your Patron with<br /> the intention of making you work. This time I<br /> shall lock you in.&quot;<br /> He did so, and left her.<br /> The next day he called again. She had written<br /> nothing again. &quot;I cannot work in prison,&quot; she<br /> said. &quot;I must be free, or I cannot write.&quot;<br /> &quot;Look here,&quot; he said. &quot;This is getting<br /> serious. I&#039;ve got to maintain you, because I&#039;m<br /> your new Patron, but you&#039;ve got to make money<br /> for me. They are clamouring for more work<br /> from your pen. Are you going to do it, or must<br /> I starve you into submission?&quot;<br /> She sat down and wept silently. She made<br /> no appeal to this man with a face like a rock,<br /> and a voice like the siren of a steamship for<br /> harshness.<br /> He came next day. She handed him a poem.<br /> &quot;Ah!&quot; he said. &quot;You can do it if you like.<br /> Now, this is worth—no, I shan&#039;t tell you how<br /> much. Very little indeed, if you reckon up the<br /> travellers&#039; and the office expenses, and the adver-<br /> tisements, and the rent and the taxes, and the<br /> clerks. I don&#039;t think anything will be left at all,<br /> c 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 10 (#22) ##############################################<br /> <br /> IO<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> except perhaps a shilling or two. You will have<br /> to do with that. As for me, I shall lose. But I<br /> am contented to lose. I always do lose. But so<br /> long as one is a Patron one cares about nothing<br /> else.&quot;<br /> She took the shilling humbly.<br /> &quot;Now go to wort again,&quot; said the Patron.<br /> &quot;Lord, what easy work is yours! You sit down<br /> and go to work with zeal. Let&#039;s have no more<br /> nonsense about walking in the meadows or on<br /> the mountains or listening to the birds. Just set<br /> to work.&quot;<br /> He left her again. Next day he called for<br /> more: every day he called for more: he did not<br /> observe that the Muse was growing pale and<br /> thin: he thought of nothing but the poem which<br /> he could take away and sell, putting the money<br /> in his own pocket. She was pale and thin<br /> because she was overworked and underfed,<br /> because she was kept away from the open<br /> air and the sunshine, and made to work all day<br /> long within the four walls.<br /> One day he came furious, bursting open the<br /> door. The Muse was seated with her head in<br /> her hands. She did not turn or notice him in<br /> any way.<br /> &quot;Look here,&quot; he shouted, &quot; What you gave me<br /> yesterday is rubbish: there is nothing in it but<br /> the rhyme and the sound. No one will buy it.<br /> Do you hear?&quot; he shrieked. &quot;No one—no one<br /> —no one will buy it—Do you hear that?&quot;<br /> She made no reply.<br /> He seized her roughly by the shoulder. Her<br /> head dropped back. Her arm fell: the poor<br /> Muse was dead. Her new Patron had killed her.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> LET me apologise to Mr. Punch for allowing<br /> it to be stated, in the list of magazines and<br /> journals published last month, that he does<br /> not return contributions. Two or three letters<br /> have been sent to me on this subject. Mr. Punch<br /> does return them, but only on the condition<br /> that they must be accompanied by a stamped<br /> and directed envelope, cover, or wrapper. This<br /> notice appears, and has for some time appeared,<br /> on the front page of every number. Readers<br /> will therefore take heart, and send their pro-<br /> ductions. I think, however, they will find it<br /> difficult to do better than Mr. Punch&#039;s staff.<br /> It is now some years since the last appearance<br /> of the Benefactor. He came then bringing<br /> blessings to the amateur and the beginner.<br /> It is well known that thousands of papers are<br /> every year rejected by editors, and&#039; thousands of<br /> MSS. are every year refused by publishers. He<br /> promised, out of his benevolence, to bring a<br /> remedy for the unhappiness and the disappoint-<br /> ments caused by these rejections. His remedy,<br /> so far as the publication of books was concerned,<br /> consisted in offering to print—he called it &quot;pub-<br /> lish&quot;—the works at the author&#039;s expense. The<br /> amateur and the aspirant do not as a rule under-<br /> stand that printing is not publishing: some of<br /> them accepted the Benefactor&#039;s offer: what<br /> became of them afterwards is not known, but<br /> can be imagined. They hid away the &quot; accounts&quot;<br /> which ran much as follows:<br /> £ s. d.<br /> To printing, binding, &amp;c. (as per<br /> agreement), i000 copies 120 0 0<br /> To advertising (as per agreement) 45 o 0<br /> 165 00<br /> To Press copies 50 &quot;)<br /> Author&#039;s 20 &gt; 0 0 0<br /> Sales, none )<br /> 165 0 0<br /> But he was a great Benefactor, and gave his<br /> authors every chance. He also had an amateur<br /> magaziue to which his friends were allowed to<br /> contribute. It was a shilling magazine. The<br /> contributors were all paid for their articles.<br /> They were paid by a method of great benevolence.<br /> They received so many copies—say fifty—for<br /> which they paid sixpence each. These copies<br /> they could sell to their friends at a shilling<br /> each so that they cleared twenty-five shillings<br /> by the transaction. The magazine, however,<br /> languished. il<br /> I recall this little history, because I have before<br /> me the prospectuses of two new amateur maga-<br /> zines. Perhaps the Benefactor has returned.<br /> The first of these deals with a paper called the<br /> Pioneer, the first number of which was promised<br /> for May 7. I have not yet seen a copy. The<br /> following is its own announcement:<br /> One of the greatest necessities of those entering the Pro-<br /> fession of Letters, but one hitherto entirely unprovided for,<br /> is a Weekly Magazine devoted to the publication of the<br /> preliminary contributions of those amateur writers and<br /> literary aspirants who are as yet unconnected with the<br /> Professional Press. The Pioneer will be, as its name<br /> implies, the first magazine published to fill this vacancy in<br /> journalism, each of its subscribers having the privilege of<br /> contributing to its pages; but, in order that each con-<br /> tributor shall have the opportunity of frequent publication,<br /> the right of contributing will be strictly limited to the first<br /> 300 subscribers.<br /> All MSS. sent in by a registered contributor will be pub-<br /> lished and paid for; one-third of the profits of each issue,<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 11 (#23) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 11<br /> from sales and advertisements, being divided amongst those<br /> who contribute the matter appearing in snob, issue.<br /> In guaranteeing to publish all MSS., the conductor<br /> reserves the right to amend or correct any MSS. which does<br /> not attain the necessary standard of literary excellence.<br /> All contributions will bear the author&#039;s name or nom de<br /> plume, and all contributors will be included seriatim in the<br /> series of portraits and biographical notices of Our Contribu-<br /> tors, which will form an interesting feature of the maza-<br /> rine.<br /> The following description of matter is in immediate<br /> request for the first issue, and MSS. may be S9nt when for-<br /> warding subscriptions:<br /> SHOET STORIES (1000 to 1500 words), POEMS,<br /> INTERESTING ARTICLES, Ac.<br /> Should you desire to contribute, it will be necessary that<br /> your application (on form below) should be sent in without<br /> delay, as the privilege of contributing can, under no circum-<br /> stances, be extended beyond the first 300 subscribers regis-<br /> tered.<br /> The subscription is is. 6d. a quarter, which will<br /> not break anybody.<br /> As an enlargement of the original plan the<br /> conductor proposes to print a directory of his<br /> 300 contributors, and send it with a copy of the<br /> Pioneer to the editors of all the magazines in<br /> the country. They will naturally peruse the<br /> Pioneer with the keenest interest and will hasten<br /> to engage the services of its contributors at<br /> large salaries. .<br /> Let us, however, consider how the amateur<br /> magazine will work. It is to be written by 300<br /> hands who will pay each is. 6d. a quarter or 6s.<br /> a year. This makes .£90 a year as a beginning,<br /> towards the expenses. There will, however, be the<br /> circulation. But who is going to buy a magazine<br /> written by amateurs and beginners? Probably<br /> there will be no circulation. But there will be<br /> the advertisements. Advertisers want some cir-<br /> culation. So far the cost of the paper, which<br /> means not less, one would think, than .£20 a<br /> week apart from contributions, seems a long way<br /> from being provided for. However, leaving that<br /> consideration aside, I would ask young writers<br /> what good they will do to themselves by<br /> appearing in the pages of an amateur magazine.<br /> They may be quite certain that if their work<br /> is good enough it would be taken by a &quot;pro-<br /> fessional&quot; journal, while one fails to see what<br /> advantage they derive from seeing and letting<br /> others see their immature productions. As to<br /> editors perusing the Pioneer, or even looking at<br /> it, they may put that out of their thoughts<br /> altogether. I shall be glad to hear further<br /> about the new Benefactor.<br /> There is another prospector in the field. This<br /> time it is an Association of Amateur Authors. It<br /> has a secretary and an office near our own,<br /> viz., Portugal-street Buildings. The Association<br /> laments that there is always the &quot; same difficulty<br /> experienced by each fresh writer, the same weary<br /> wait and delay before he can make a start. The<br /> Association offers—<br /> (1) To criticise MSS. for readers. This is<br /> exactly what our Society has been doing for<br /> years.<br /> (2) To publish the member&#039;s writings in the<br /> Association&#039;s monthly paper—again the Amateur<br /> Magazine—&quot; if their merit warrant&quot; the produc-<br /> tion. The Comhill and Longman&#039;s and the rest of<br /> them do just exactly the same thing: they will<br /> publish these papers &quot;if their merit warrant.&quot;<br /> (3) They will tell their members where they<br /> are most likely to succeed. Our reading branch<br /> has done the same thing for years.<br /> (4) They will charge a guinea for subscription:<br /> if the subscriber wants the &quot;Magazine Advan-<br /> tages &quot; he must pay two guineas.<br /> (5) They expect members to take as many<br /> copies of the Magazine when they have papers in<br /> it as possible. .<br /> A letter in another column advocates the<br /> Amateur Magazine. The writer says that &quot;at pre-<br /> sent a young writer has no means of obtaining that<br /> skilled revision of his work, which would make it<br /> acceptable to editors, and would show him his<br /> faults.&quot; Nowthis Society has for many yearsoffered<br /> to do this kind of work and does actually do it, with<br /> results quite satisfactory. If our friend would<br /> only send up his work we shall obtain exactly the<br /> revision and criticism that he requires. How<br /> would an Amateur Magazine help him? His<br /> papers in print would not show him his faults<br /> more plainly than his papers in MS. It is a mere<br /> dream to suppose that editors would turn to the<br /> magazine for authors. The papers would be for<br /> the most part weak and flabby, because writers<br /> worth considering would never think of appearing<br /> in its pages: it would, indeed, do a writer much<br /> damage if he were known to write for such a<br /> magazine, while it would be impossible to make<br /> such a magazine pay. The only way—there can<br /> be no other way—for a writer to succeed is to send<br /> good work to an editor. The best way, if he<br /> wants his work revised, is to get an opinion from<br /> the Society&#039;s reader.<br /> The following is a note from the Academy :—<br /> The best comment on Mr. Bryoe&#039;s speech concerning the<br /> need for cheap literature, at the booksellers&#039; dinner, comes<br /> from a Birmingham firm. &quot;Mr. Bryce,&quot; writes our corre-<br /> spondent, &quot; spoke of a general lowering of prices; it is in-<br /> structive to note that his &#039; Holy Roman Empire&#039; was first<br /> issued at 6s.; the second edition was gs.; the third, 78.6&lt;i.;<br /> and this was followed by a library edition at 14s.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 12 (#24) ##############################################<br /> <br /> J.2<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Well, but is it a comment on Mr. Bryce at all?<br /> For, was Mr. Bryce ever consulted as to the<br /> price of his book? I very much doubt it. I<br /> imagine that the editions were &#039;changed about as<br /> to price without consulting him at all. If, how-<br /> ever, he was consulted, it would still not be a<br /> comment on his plea for cheap literature, because<br /> it is absurd to suppose that the mass of the<br /> people would wish to buy that scholarly work,<br /> the &quot; Holy Roman Empire,&quot; even if they got it<br /> for sixpence. Cheap literature can only exist if<br /> the people for whom it is published buy it; but<br /> they will certainly not buy what they cannot<br /> understand. Therefore cheap literature must<br /> always be something that the people wish to read;<br /> down to their level, perhaps; in some respects,<br /> as witness the returns of the free libraries, by no<br /> means such a bad level. The hope of the future<br /> is that the free libraries will gradually improve<br /> the taste of the people. Thus the limitations<br /> which at present confine cheap literature within<br /> narrow limits will be enlarged.<br /> In other words, only a book which appeals to<br /> the people can be issued at a cheap price, because<br /> only with such a book will the lowering of the<br /> price extend the number of buyers. But the<br /> general run of new books published at 6s., i.e.,<br /> 4*. 6d., do not circulate on an average more than<br /> 600 copies or so. These books would not gain a<br /> single additional purchaser if they were published<br /> at sixpence, and the lowering of the price would<br /> simply mean the impossibility of producing the<br /> work. Many hundreds of such books now pub-<br /> lished every year, arrive at a circulation of no<br /> more than six or seven hundred. They bring in<br /> to the publisher a small profit. If the price was<br /> lowered they would cease to appear. Their loss<br /> would not hurt the authors much, but it would hurt<br /> the publishers a great deal. On the other hand,<br /> when a book is by an old and established favourite<br /> the people buy it up by the hundred thousand if<br /> it is offered at sixpence. Then comes the question<br /> whether it is worth while to publish the former<br /> class of books at all. I have always maintained<br /> that it matters nothing how many books are pub-<br /> lished. The world may be trusted to make its own<br /> selection. The only persons to be considered are<br /> the booksellers who are so ill-advised as to buy them<br /> —sometimes. If out of a hundred books ninety-<br /> nine die in the same season as their birth, still the<br /> hundredth is left, and of the ninety-nine, which of<br /> us has bought a copy? For my own part I buy<br /> a great many books. I never buy a new book<br /> until I hear about it in conversation. Yet if the<br /> ninety-nine books had not been published, per-<br /> haps we should have missed the hundredth.<br /> These remarks apply not to novels only but to<br /> every kind of book.<br /> I said last month, quoting a writer in the<br /> Morning Post, that I could not understand how<br /> any novelist could produce three, four, or five<br /> novels in a year. Most novelists of my acquaint-<br /> ance are contented with the production of one a<br /> year, or with three in two years at the most.<br /> Certain names and facts have been sent to me,<br /> and I have caused an examination to be made<br /> into the rate of production of the writers owning<br /> these names. I find that, in two cases, six novels<br /> were produced by the author in a single year! In<br /> more than two, five; that the average of one<br /> writer is from four a year; of another one three;<br /> and of several writers two. These facts surprised<br /> me a great deal. I thought that I knew most of<br /> the working of the novelist&#039;s profession, but this<br /> rapidity of production is new to me. Also, the<br /> critic of the Morning Post was right, and I tender<br /> him my apologies for questioning his statement.<br /> As regards the works these parties produced,<br /> some of them, by one writer at least, are short<br /> shilling stories, which can hardly rank as novels.<br /> Of the rest one can only say of novelists, as of<br /> everything else, that one may outstay his welcome.<br /> I can conceive no better way of making a circle<br /> of readers tired of a writer than for him to bring<br /> out a new book three or four times a year.<br /> The Royal Literary Fund has had its annual<br /> dinner. The Duke of Devonshire spoke of the<br /> followers of literature as he understands them;<br /> namely, so many helpless paupers dependent<br /> chiefly on the doles of the fund, and on those of<br /> the publishers, whom His Grace most Graciously<br /> described as the patrons of the author. Now I<br /> want to protest against the whole business—the<br /> speech of the Duke, which was based on pure<br /> ignorance, and the conduct of the Fund. It is a<br /> most useful institution; it relieves a good many<br /> people; they are authors, it is true, but they are<br /> not, as a rule, authors of the slightest distinc-<br /> tion. A good writer, in these days, as easily gets<br /> a good living as a good doctor. He cannot, of<br /> course, make a colossal fortune like a man in<br /> business; but he is not a pauper, nor a depen-<br /> dent, and, except in very rare cases, he does not<br /> apply to the Royal Literary Fund for help. I<br /> want that point recognised in public. At present,<br /> year after year, men of letters are publicly spoken<br /> of as if they were all dependent for their liveli-<br /> hood upon the doles and alms of the Royal Literary<br /> Fund. Now, I repeat, and it cannot be repeated<br /> too strongly, that the great mass of the working<br /> men and women of letters have no more need of<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 13 (#25) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 13<br /> the grants made by the Fund than the great<br /> mass of barristers stand in need of their corre-<br /> sponding association. They do not live from<br /> hand to mouth. If they are seized with sudden<br /> illness there is money in the bank. I do not<br /> claim for them that many of them can make<br /> fortunes—even a moderate fortune; and I think<br /> that most of them die in harness. I do claim<br /> for the average writer who is generally more or<br /> less of a journalist—writes for the magazines;<br /> perhaps edits something; is perhaps a novelist<br /> or a specialist, or an educational writer—that he<br /> lives well and like a gentleman, that he also lives<br /> cleanly and soberly, that he has no more need of<br /> asking the charity of the Literary Fund than he<br /> has of going into the workhouse. Who are the<br /> people to whom the Fund is useful? There are<br /> —always with certain sad exceptions—people who<br /> have the slightest possible reason for calling<br /> themselves authors. They are necessitous; in<br /> many cases without any fault of their own. By<br /> all means let them be relieved; but do not take<br /> their cases as examples of the starving condition<br /> of the literary profession. Now, I speak from<br /> my own knowledge, because I sat on the council<br /> of the Fund for three or four years.<br /> The next point is that the administration of<br /> the Fund must be radically altered. At present it<br /> is administered, not by the literary profession,<br /> but for the literary profession. It is degrading<br /> to us that people should be sending round the<br /> hat for us, especially as we don&#039;t want it. If we<br /> must go round, hat in hand, to take up a collec-<br /> tion, let us at least do it ourselves, and not ask<br /> noble dukes and lords to do it for us. Imagine<br /> the pride and pleasure of Lincoln&#039;s Inn if a<br /> dinner were held once a year to collect money in<br /> order to give doles to necessitous barristers.<br /> You cannot imagine it. Then think of the<br /> pleasure and the pride with which literary men<br /> regard the annual collection made for necessitous<br /> writers. There are, and there must always be,<br /> certain unfortunate persons in the writing line,<br /> Let the Royal Literary Fund intervene to give<br /> them assistance; but let it be managed in secret,<br /> both the assistance and the need for it. The<br /> world need know nothing about it. The resig-<br /> nation of half a dozen members and their<br /> substitution by actual literary men, is all that is<br /> wanted. We should then, as a matter of course,<br /> put a stop to the degradation of the dinner, and<br /> wash our linen at home.<br /> The list of Birthday Honours has been given<br /> to the world as usual. This list is looked for by<br /> a large section of the world with great curiosity<br /> and interest. Those who are going to appear in<br /> it know the fact beforehand, and are not, there-<br /> fore, so anxious. As for the anxiety of people<br /> generally, it has been attributed to one&#039;s natural<br /> fear that friends may be in the list. Since we<br /> cannot ourselves expect to be in the list, we<br /> naturally do not desire to see our dear friends<br /> receiving Honours. Of course, the old ialk about<br /> distinctions and honours has quite gone out;<br /> twenty years ago people who had not been offered<br /> anything were loud in their contempt of those<br /> who received anything. It was too thin, even<br /> then; the talk is abandoned now; it is quite un-<br /> derstood that all Englishmen would very much<br /> like to receive a distinction of some kind. It is<br /> also quite certain that a great many Englishmen<br /> really believe that they deserve a distinction. If<br /> we examine the list before us, we find that it con-<br /> tains no more than forty-eight names out of the<br /> sixty millions in this island and the Colonies. Of<br /> these, political claims and services—they are not<br /> always the same—supply eight names; wealth,<br /> with probably some political reasons, four;<br /> special services, five; the Civil Service, ten; the<br /> Colonies, four; the Diplomatic Service, five;<br /> foreign service, eight; Science—one branch only<br /> —one; Law, one; and Music, one. The Army and<br /> the Navy will be provided for, I suppose, in another<br /> Gazette. Now, there are many—very many—<br /> branches of intellectual achievement that employ<br /> the energies of my countrymen; in some of them<br /> they constantly make discoveries, inventions, and<br /> achievements, whicn are of the greatest import-<br /> ance to the human race generally, and to this<br /> country in particular. Such, for instance, are<br /> engineering, science in all its branches, architec-<br /> ture, art, literature also in all its branches, educa-<br /> tion, scholarship, mechanics, philosophy. There<br /> are names in all these lines of work that are held,<br /> by those who know the subjects, in the highest<br /> honour. Where are these names in the Birthday<br /> List? They are conspicuous by their absence.<br /> But it is urged these things bring their own<br /> reward. Very true. Also that distinctions are<br /> not needed for the distinguished. Are, then,<br /> these forty-eight persons chosen for their obscurity?<br /> Certainly, outside the Civil Service, few know the<br /> names of those who are constantly raised to<br /> honour from that branch of the service. Dis-<br /> tinctions, it is true, cannot confer honour on the<br /> distinguished. They do not. They may teach<br /> the world, however, that certain forms of achieve-<br /> ment are worthy of honour. I suppose that the<br /> first place of honour in a nation is due to the<br /> statesman, and the second to the captain, but the<br /> third belongs to the man of literature, science,<br /> or art. And I maintain that it is the duty of<br /> a statesman to make the nation understand that<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 14 (#26) ##############################################<br /> <br /> &#039;4<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> these branches of intellectual achievement do<br /> really confer honour upon the country.<br /> In another column will be found a precis of a<br /> recent article in the Daily Telegraph, with a<br /> commentary upon it from the Academy. I un-<br /> fortunately saw neither—but the remark quoted<br /> from the Telegraph certainly does not show<br /> knowledge up to date of the publisher&#039;s methods.<br /> The passage is thus reported: &quot;Having paid a<br /> good deal more than he ought for one book, the<br /> publisher has to pay less than he ought for<br /> another. His successes, such as they are, have to<br /> make up for his losses.&quot; Now, there are but<br /> one or two publishers who buy their books, i.e.,<br /> buy them at a proper price calculated on the<br /> sale of the author&#039;s books: the rest give royalties.<br /> In no case has it ever been known that the<br /> royalty given to a successful author was greater<br /> than, or equal to, the difference between the<br /> trade price and the cost of production: in other<br /> words, the publisher is certain, in even the largest<br /> royalties given to such an author, that he will get<br /> back the cost of production with a margin. It is<br /> not by large royalties to successful authors that the<br /> publisher loses. And in the case of unsuccessful<br /> authors it is difficult to understand how they can<br /> make up the publisher&#039;s losses—for they consti-<br /> tute his losses. _ _<br /> The Publishers&#039; Circular questions my opinion<br /> about war time and publishing. It was not, how-<br /> ever, my opinion: it was the experience of an old<br /> and experienced publisher; the experience of the<br /> war time of 1855-1857. As for the present slack-<br /> ness, the months of May and June are always<br /> slack: I should be of opinion also that the<br /> feverish rush to hurl new novels upon the<br /> market is producing its natural effect. The world<br /> will not buy an unlimited quantity of novels:<br /> booksellers are not so rich that they can afford to<br /> load their shelves with a mass of books which<br /> they cannot sell. A little slackness ought to<br /> make publishers reflect on the dangers of over-pro-<br /> duction. In the year 1832 the novel market was<br /> absolutely destroyed by the lavish production of<br /> bad work. I strongly recommend to the Book-<br /> sellers&#039; Association the adoption, for their own<br /> protection, of the cheap, convenient, and effective<br /> method which I proposed to them some months<br /> ago. This method would save them a great many<br /> thousands a year, and it would be an effectual bar<br /> to the production of rubbish.<br /> The Morning Post returns to the subject of Sir<br /> Henry Craik&#039;s allegations concerning the Society.<br /> This after-dinner speaker, it will be remembered,<br /> said, among other things, that the Society of<br /> Authors called the publisher a needless inven-<br /> tion. Now, the Society of Authors has never said<br /> anything of the kind. The writer in the Morn-<br /> ing Post says that, &quot; the opinion that an intelli-<br /> gent agent would do for the novelist all that the<br /> publisher can do, at far less cost to the author,<br /> has again and again been expressed.&quot; By the<br /> Society of Authors? Never once. In the pages<br /> of The Author a good many opinions are advanced<br /> and freely discussed: these are not the utterances<br /> of the Society. In every number, in a prominent<br /> place, the Committee announce that they are only<br /> responsible for the statements signed officially<br /> by the Secretary. They have never sent to the<br /> papers any opinion or theory to the effect of the<br /> words quoted above. Again, The Author does<br /> not, as the writer in the Morning Post thinks,<br /> &quot;criticise publishers&quot; generally: it publishes<br /> their agreements and explains what they mean:<br /> it exposes tricks: it does not treat the &quot;average<br /> publisher as a knave,&quot; because it does not speak<br /> of the &quot; average &quot; publisher at all. At the same<br /> time the tricks and over-reachings, and trading<br /> on ignorance, exposed in the columns of The<br /> A uthor, prove that there are a good many knaves<br /> in the trade: some of them, as I know from per-<br /> sonal examination of documents, occupying high<br /> places in the trade. As for Sir Henry Craik, if<br /> he thinks it a worthy rule to &quot;indulge in little<br /> conscious exaggerations,&quot; as the writer in the<br /> Morning Post kindly puts the case, it is his<br /> business.<br /> Take, for instance, this allegation about pub-<br /> lishers being needless. My own private opinion,<br /> which in no way expresses the collective opinion<br /> of the Society, is this : The trade of publishing is<br /> purely mechanical, especially in those cases where<br /> the author is &quot;established.&quot; Now, in every<br /> branch of literature there are authors by the<br /> dozen who are &quot; established &quot;: that is to say, their<br /> works are certain of being taken in more than<br /> sufficient quantities to pay for the cost of produc-<br /> tion. There is absolutely nothing done for their<br /> books by the publisher which cannot be done by<br /> a distributing agent, whose commission must be<br /> paid and nothing more. And then he becomes a<br /> publisher, so that it is absurd to say that a<br /> publisher is needless. Some two or three years<br /> ago a publisher sent to a certain paper what he<br /> tendered as his figures. He spoke of a book<br /> which had had a very large sale: he asserted that<br /> after paying his expenses he was left with no more<br /> than Sd. a copy on the book. No more than<br /> Sd. a copy! What had he done for his 8d.?<br /> Nothing. His clerks&#039; and office expenses had aJl<br /> been deducted. He was drawing Sd. a copy an<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 15 (#27) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> many thousands for the mechanical work done by<br /> his clerks. What a splendid business! Now, a<br /> distributing agent would have done the whole<br /> business for a commission, including the clerks&#039;<br /> work. The distributing ajent will be the general<br /> publisher of the new literature of the future.<br /> There will remain, of course, the great works<br /> undertaken by the great capitalists.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> RECIPE FOR AJRJMMEB NOVEL.<br /> [In spite of the war excitement in New York,<br /> space is found in the newspapers for this kind<br /> of fun. It is to the World of that city that<br /> our readers must give their thanks if they find<br /> it amusing.]<br /> : By Harold R. Vynne, Who &#039;.<br /> &#039;Is an Expert Plot Chef and<br /> ; Verbiage Salad-Maker.<br /> Incentives.—(i) The necessity of keeping one&#039;s<br /> mind occupied; (2) the prornise of cash on<br /> delivery of manuscript; (3) the desire to do<br /> somebody up.<br /> Ingredients.—One or more characters taken<br /> from real life—preferably bad characters, because<br /> they are much more readily portrayed than<br /> good ones and are always less tame. An American<br /> heiress with a record as a jilt and a predisposi-<br /> tion to heart failure. A foreign nobleman with<br /> fringe on his trousers and a mortgage on his<br /> ancestral real estate. A poor but honest lover,<br /> who refuses to commit forgery to wear crease3 in<br /> his trousers. A pert widow with a corking<br /> divorce record and a propensity for making<br /> trouble. A proud and vulgar parent of the<br /> heiress, who kicks the poor but honest lover in<br /> the neck and lends the foreign nobleman money.<br /> A summer home of the heiress. Horses and<br /> carriages. Whisky, wine, and beer. A yacht or<br /> two, golf links and a dog. Ginger ad lib.<br /> Method.—Get into your story with a startling<br /> event of some kind, a dog fight in the Broadway<br /> in which the losing pup is backed by the heiress&#039;s<br /> father, or a game of craps in which the foreign<br /> nobleman goes broke.<br /> Make it a rule to have something sensational<br /> happen in every thousand words, if it&#039;s only a<br /> birth or a thunderstorm. Never forget that<br /> the publisher won&#039;t come down with the check<br /> unless he sees his money coming back.<br /> A summer novel should be pitched in a summer<br /> scene. Pitch the parent&#039;s summer home in the<br /> mountains and the heiress into the lake. Then<br /> when the poor but honest lover rescues her, let<br /> the foreign nobleman rob him of his clothes<br /> while the lady is unconscious, chloroform him<br /> into insensibility and impersonate her saviour<br /> himself.<br /> Invite the nobleman to dinner and send the<br /> poor but honest lover to jail on a charge of<br /> going in swimming without a bathing suit.<br /> Engage the heiress and the nobleman to marry<br /> and let the lover gnash his teeth on the bars of<br /> the cell until the frisky widow helps him to break<br /> jail and tells him the heiress is his long-lost<br /> sister. Have the lover go crazy at this stage of<br /> the game, marry the widow and go up to see the<br /> old gentleman with a proposition that he recog-<br /> nise him legally as his son, divvy up the estate<br /> and give the foreign nobleman leave to go and<br /> blow himself full of air with a bicycle pump.<br /> The old gentleman might opportunely throw<br /> a fit here, and in his fall and clawings kick a<br /> hole in a piece of rock, disclosing a cave in which<br /> repose certain family documents showing that he<br /> is his own grandson, that the poor but honest<br /> lover never had any parents or sisters, and that<br /> the family fortune belongs to a millionaire.<br /> This will justify the foreign nobleman, who has<br /> no love for pauper women, in running violently<br /> down a steep hill and breaking his face on the<br /> rocks, while the disinherited heiress, certain at<br /> last that the poor but honest lover loves her for<br /> herself alone, may persuade him to divorce the<br /> widow and marry her instead.<br /> A fine point in morals may be drawn here by<br /> showing that the widow, with the divorcing habit<br /> strong upon her, hates to be divorced herself<br /> when it comes to a show-down. A thrilling if<br /> improbable anti-climax may be secured by having<br /> the millionaire give all the money back to the<br /> bride and bridegroom and act sufficiently astonish-<br /> ing to justify the old gentleman in celebrating<br /> his son-in-law&#039;s luck. The yacht mentioned in<br /> the list of ingredients is for no particular purpose<br /> except to prove that a summer novel cannot be<br /> written without one. The dog is to try the novel<br /> on before it goes to the publisher. If the dog<br /> dies the manuscript is sure of acceptance.<br /> Remarks.—If this is to be your first essay in<br /> novel-writing (and only amateurs write successful<br /> novels nowadays) remember that as an unknown<br /> writer you cannot possibly be over-advertised.<br /> Presuming, therefore, that you are writing your<br /> novel at a summer resort of some sort, it will pay<br /> you to roar on all occasions on the subject of<br /> your literary achievements and intentions. Lose-<br /> no opportunity of letting people know what you<br /> are doing.<br /> Write all your copy with a stylographic pen<br /> on the hotel piazza, and when your proof-sheets<br /> arrive spread them out on the lawn to dry and<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 16 (#28) ##############################################<br /> <br /> i6<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> throw croquet balls at the typographical errors<br /> until a crowd gathers to inquire into your occupa-<br /> tion. In this way you secure advance discussion<br /> for your book and possible profit besides. Most<br /> people who meet an author they believe to be crazy<br /> will buy one of his books when they strike it on a<br /> news-stand.<br /> Be careful in the matter of dress. Emile Zola<br /> writes all his novels attired in pyjamas and a<br /> skull cap, and Laura Jean Libbey hers in a<br /> gingham Mother Hubbard with leather ruching at<br /> the throat and wrists.<br /> The preparation of a summer novel demands<br /> some attention to appropriate clothes. Fit your<br /> costumes to the situation of which you write. If<br /> the chapter is to describe a storm at sea or a<br /> private hullabaloo in the cabin of a yacht, never<br /> touch your pen to paper until you&#039;ve donned a<br /> silk shirt, white ducks, and a patent-leather<br /> belt; if it&#039;s a &quot;hop&quot; that needs touching up<br /> write in evening dress, no matter if it&#039;s broad<br /> daylight and the people around you are in bathing<br /> suits. This, of course, supposing that you are a<br /> man.<br /> If you are a lady summer novelist, this writer<br /> would not attempt to advise you in the matter of<br /> dress, because women at summer resorts always<br /> wear the nicest clothes they&#039;ve got, anyhow, and<br /> an authoress of any talent ought to be able to<br /> write a passionate story equally well in a Worth<br /> creation or in a piece of calico.<br /> Such female novelists, however, judging by<br /> their work, discover increased dramatic intensity<br /> in the exercise of eccentric physical effects. In<br /> describing a tropical love scene the authoress may<br /> produce wonders of thought by coiling her ankles<br /> about her neck and fanning her face with her<br /> feet. Or she may secure inspiration for whole<br /> pages of witty dialogue between two or more of<br /> her female characters by hanging two cats over a<br /> fence rail and taking down their remarks in<br /> shorthand.<br /> Lastly, when your book is printed and on sale,<br /> be sure and buy a copy of it yourself. It is not<br /> fair that the publisher should go entirely without<br /> encouragement.<br /> MR. NUTT AQAIN.<br /> WE have had nearly six months of Mr.<br /> Nutt: six months trying to get out of<br /> him a direct and plain answer to a<br /> plain question.<br /> The question arose out of an assertion made by<br /> this gentleman. He said, writing in the Academy<br /> of Jan. i : (i) That it had been asserted in The<br /> Author that &quot;publishers always recovered their<br /> outlay, and never made any losses &quot;; and (2)<br /> that &quot; the statement had since been repeated in<br /> The Author without one word of qualification.&quot;<br /> Observe, if you please, the exactness of the<br /> phrase, &quot; without one word of qualification.&quot;<br /> The words were therefore offered as quotations.<br /> The reader was clearly invited to consider them<br /> as quotations.<br /> It is interesting to note that, before making<br /> these &quot; quotations,&quot; Mr. Nutt says he has not seen<br /> more than two numbers of The Author in his<br /> life. Strange that one number should contain<br /> the first paragraph quoted, and the second its<br /> repetition, &quot;without one word of qualification &quot;!<br /> However, on Jan. 5, my solicitors, Messrs.<br /> Field, Roscoe, and Co. wrote to Mr. Nutt, asking<br /> for the exact references to the two passages quoted,<br /> and reserving the right of publishing the corre-<br /> spondence.<br /> Mr. Nutt replied that he was out of town, and<br /> must defer an answer till his return.<br /> No answer came. Such a little thing as the<br /> truth of an allegation is, of course, easily for-<br /> gotten.<br /> We allowed him five weeks, and then a<br /> reminder was sent by Messrs. Field, Roscoe, and Co.<br /> Mr. Nutt then wrote expressing the deepest<br /> indignation at receiving a letter from solicitors.<br /> Now, he did not express any indignation when<br /> the first letter came from the solicitors. He said,<br /> however, that he was ready to give information to<br /> the proper person.<br /> I therefore wrote to him myself, as the proper<br /> person, merely repeating the questions. That is,<br /> I repeated his alleged quotations, and asked him<br /> where they could be found in The Author.<br /> He replied (Feb. 25) that he could not give<br /> the references &quot;off-hand &quot; — he had only had<br /> five weeks to look for them! He also sent a<br /> quantity of remarks which had nothing to do<br /> with the question,<br /> I sent a repetition of my letter, again asking<br /> for those references. He replied, a week later,<br /> that he could not get at all the volumes of The<br /> Author.<br /> I informed him that Mr. Thring would lend<br /> him the volumes. And I wrote a third letter<br /> again asking where those references were.<br /> Meantime I had answered in The Author his<br /> general charges, and the various assertions he had<br /> made in the Academy. He now sent me a long<br /> letter, saying nothing about the references, and<br /> demanded publication of this letter in The Author.<br /> His demand as a right I would not allow. How-<br /> ever, I referred the matter to the Committee.<br /> The Committee informed him that when he<br /> had answered the first question, and had either<br /> produced the references to The Author for the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 17 (#29) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> n<br /> alleged quotations or had withdrawn the charge,<br /> they would be prepared to consider any remarks<br /> he might wish to make in The Author.<br /> The reader will be by this time prepared to<br /> hear that no answer has been forthcoming to the<br /> original question, and that those references have<br /> not yet appeared.<br /> Mr. Nutt made a complaint to the Committee<br /> about his letter to the Academy having been<br /> piinted in The Author without his permission, as<br /> if when a person is attacked he should ask permis-<br /> sion of his assailant before he quotes the words<br /> containing the charge!<br /> This correspondence explains itself. The alleged<br /> quotations from The Author I cannot find—no<br /> one else, so far, has been able to find them. Mr.<br /> Nutt alleges that they were in The Author: he has<br /> not yet receded from his position: he has now<br /> taken six months — his last letter was dated<br /> April 18 — to find the passages, and if he has<br /> been unable to find them, he is unaccountably<br /> shy about disclosing this fact.<br /> When a man advances positively that another<br /> man has publicly stated certain things, and that<br /> he has repeated these things &quot; without a word of<br /> qualification,&quot; there are three courses open to him:<br /> either to prove that allegation by giving the exact<br /> references; or to withdraw it with an apology; or,<br /> failing both courses, to accept the conclusion<br /> which is natural. W. B.<br /> A SONG FOB A BOSS-<br /> Ro;e asks for a rhyme ?—<br /> Why, did she but know it,<br /> There is never a poet<br /> Bat sings her, some time!<br /> 2.<br /> Only mention her name:<br /> The sweetest of fancies,<br /> Ballades and romances,<br /> Are set to the same.<br /> 3-<br /> Only open and read:<br /> The daintiest pages,<br /> In bards of all ages,<br /> To Rose are decreed.<br /> 4-<br /> Moore, Shelley, and Keats,<br /> Austin Dobson—the darling!<br /> Thrnsh, linnet and starling,<br /> Kose-singing one meets.<br /> 5-<br /> Rose asks for a rhyme ?—<br /> There is never a poet,<br /> (Their rose-gardens show it),<br /> But sings her, some time!<br /> New Zealand. Mary Colbobne-Vekl.<br /> QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.<br /> Qaem Deus vnlt perdere dementat prius.<br /> ON returning from abroad, I learn from The<br /> Author for May that the number for April<br /> included an inquiry as to the source of the<br /> above quotation. But for my absence, I should<br /> have written a month ago to state that &quot; Querist&quot;<br /> is undoubtedly right in supposing that the proper<br /> form of the line is<br /> Quern Jupiter vnlt perdere dementat prius.<br /> Something like this may be seen in the index to<br /> the edition of Euripides published by Professor<br /> Barnes in 1694, but the actual words (as just<br /> quoted) are to be found in the work of another<br /> Cambridge professor of Greek thirty-four years<br /> earlier. In Duport&#039;s &quot;Gnomologia Homerica&quot;<br /> (1660), p. 282, the words are added in paren-<br /> thesis immediately after the Greek quotation<br /> orav 8&#039; 6 8a.tp.iov avSpi iropaivr) nana,<br /> tov vovv lf}Kaol/t irpinov.<br /> The Greek is preserved by Athenagoras, &quot;Sup-<br /> plicatio pro Christianis&quot; chap. 26, p. 138, and<br /> (with the addition of u f3ov\tvtTai) by the Scholiast<br /> on Sophocles, &quot;Antigone,&quot; 620. It is entered<br /> among the Adespota in Nauck&#039;s &quot;Tragicorum<br /> Grrecorum Fragmenta,&quot; No. 455. There is a<br /> close parallel to this fragment in another quoted<br /> by the Attic orator Lycurgus, contra Leocratem<br /> s. 92 :—<br /> orav yap opyil &amp;aip.6vuiv j3\airrn riva,<br /> tovt avro irpSiTov, i£a&lt;paipeiTai &lt;j&gt;p€vSiv<br /> tov vovv tov eV0A6V&#039; £is Si Ttjv xeipw Tptirtt<br /> yv&lt;Iip.rjv, iv tiSrj prjSev &lt;m, aftapraytu<br /> This longer fragment is placed among the Ades-<br /> pota by Nauck (No. 296). Valckenaer, in his<br /> note on Euripides, &quot; Hippolytus,&quot; 322, is inclined<br /> to ascribe it to Euripides, while Barnes (without<br /> any external authority) actually prints the shorter<br /> fragment among the remains of Euripides, and<br /> in his index (as already noticed by S. G.) has the<br /> heading &quot;Deus quos vult perdere, dementat<br /> prius.&quot; The Latin, in the form&quot; Quem Jupiter&quot;<br /> &amp;c., has never been traced to any earlier work<br /> than Duport&#039;s &quot;Gnomologia&quot; (1660). In the<br /> editions of Athenagoras earlier than that date,<br /> e.g., in the edition printed by H, Stephanus in<br /> 1557, I observe that the Greek is translated<br /> differently. I have little, if any, doubt that the<br /> Latin version in the &quot;Gnomologia&quot; is Duport&#039;s<br /> own. His work shows how familiar he was with<br /> the Vulgate, and he was probably aware that<br /> &quot;demento&quot; in the sense of &quot;dementem facio,&quot;<br /> though not used by any classical author, was to<br /> be found in the Vulgate version of Acts viii, 11.<br /> Duport does not generally translate his Greek<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 18 (#30) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> quotations into Latin, but he does so in the case<br /> of a fragment of Euripides on p. 28, and a frag-<br /> ment of iEschylus on p. 200. Thus it is highly<br /> probable that here, in the case of another tragic<br /> fragment, he is similarly offering a rendering of<br /> his own. In composing this rendering he pre-<br /> sumably had in mind a parallel passage from<br /> Publilius Syrus:<br /> Stnltnm facit Fortuna quern vult perdere.<br /> St. John&#039;s College, . E. Sandys.<br /> Cambridge, May 9.<br /> I looked up this topic for the May number,<br /> but thought my notes might be unnecessary. I<br /> find, however, that some points still require<br /> settling. The letter of &quot; S. G.&quot; is good, though<br /> not complete, and the reference of Mr. Earle to<br /> Notes and Queries applies to the very first<br /> volumes of that serial.<br /> Being limited to my own library, I shall not<br /> quote what is elsewhere. But first, for the verb<br /> &quot;dementat,&quot; which is either transitive or intransi-<br /> tive, and is very rare. It occurs in Lactantius of<br /> the early fourth (not tenth) century, and tells how<br /> the persecutor Diocletian &quot;semper dementabat,&quot;<br /> or behaved like a madman; i.e., was demented.<br /> I discover only one other example of the verb<br /> &quot;demento,&quot; and that is in the Latin Vulgate of<br /> Acts viii., 11, at which place we read that Simon<br /> Magus had for a long time stolen the wits of the<br /> Samaritans; &quot;dementasset,&quot; had demented them.<br /> Here the verb is transitive, and certainly not<br /> classical, although it accords with the common<br /> Latin proverb, the varying forms of which are of<br /> equal value. As for the saying itself, its first<br /> representative seems to be in the &quot;Legatio &quot; of<br /> the learned Athenagoras, who wrote in Greek<br /> his plea for Christianity late in the second<br /> century. He maintains the goodness of God and<br /> His works, and, as I understand him, ascribes<br /> other works to Daemons who, in his opinion, are<br /> evil. Here it is that he introduces a Greek<br /> quotation, from an author he does not name, in<br /> this way: &quot;For God does not incite to what is<br /> contrary to nature, &#039;But a Daemon when he<br /> devises any harm against a man first injures his<br /> mind.&#039;&quot; The Latin of Joshua Barnes may do<br /> for this, but my copy of Athenagoras sticks to<br /> the word &quot;Daemon,&quot; and the annotators uphold<br /> it, rightly, as I think. (See the Oxford edition of<br /> Athenagoras, 1706). The fine edition of the<br /> Benedictines (Paris, 1742) also refers the<br /> dementing process to demons. Your wise readers<br /> will draw their own inferences.<br /> In conclusion I may mention the &quot;Beautiful<br /> Thoughts from Latin Authors,&quot; by Dr. Ramage<br /> (p. 791. London, 1879), where a little critical<br /> acumen is needed. So &quot;here I make an ending,&quot;<br /> and am, &amp;c., B. H. C.<br /> <br /> LITERATURE IN THE PERIODICALS.<br /> Cheap Books—The Daily Telegraph&#039;s Bai&gt;<br /> Opinion of Current Fiction—Modern Lan-<br /> guage Teaching—Letters of Charles Lamb<br /> —Parasitical Literature.<br /> MR. BRYCE&#039;S suggestion for cheaper books<br /> is discussed in a leading article by the<br /> Daily Telegraph (May 11). So far<br /> from depreciating the statesman&#039;s view of the pre-<br /> ponderance of newspaper reading, this great organ<br /> goes the length of saying that it is &quot;quite an<br /> arguable point whether the newspaper will not<br /> end by swallowing up the magazine, as it has<br /> already succeeded in establishing its popularity at<br /> the expense of books,&quot; Were it not for the great<br /> circulating libraries, says the writer, the produc-<br /> tion of books would be more perilous still. And<br /> then, in demonstrating why books are dear, he<br /> proceeds to support the theory so often advanced,<br /> that the successful book is the publisher&#039;s contra<br /> for the unsuccessful ones. &quot;Having paid a good<br /> deal more than he ought for one book, the pub-<br /> lisher has to pay less than he ought for another;<br /> his successes, such as they are, have to make up<br /> for his losses; while in such an unhealthy state<br /> of things, the young writer of promise has a<br /> peculiar difficulty in getting even a hearing,&quot;<br /> Nor would publishers extend their own sales by<br /> lowering their prices. Books have their own<br /> clientile, and it is true of nearly every kind of<br /> book, that those who want it will pay the price,<br /> and that its issue at a &quot;popular&quot; price will not<br /> attract a larger circle. For the rest the Tele-<br /> graph has a really bad opinion of the origin and<br /> nature of novels.<br /> Oar bookstalls are flooded with works of fiction, mostly<br /> written by women—often mi grammatical, largely worth-<br /> less in character, and wholly devoid of any reasonable<br /> interest. They are produced because in nine cases out of<br /> ten the anthoress pays for the production. They are<br /> reviewed because critics are more generous to-day to the<br /> average novel than they have been in any other period of<br /> our literary history. They are sold because the assumption<br /> still continues to be held—and is, indeed, to some extent<br /> borne out by facts—that fiction written by women is read<br /> by women, in country houses, at the seaside, or in foreign<br /> places of fashionable resort, where no other form of literary<br /> work has a chance of entering.<br /> In the Academy (May 21), J. E. H. W.<br /> controverts the above statements almost entirely.<br /> True it is, he says, that the great mass of our<br /> half-instructed population are quite contented<br /> with magazines and newspapers, &quot; but then the-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 19 (#31) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> great mass of our half-educated population never<br /> did buy books.&quot; Publishers do not depend upon<br /> the circulating libraries; the latter &quot;do not buy<br /> books in large numbers; as a rule they have no<br /> need to; naturally they have no wish to.&quot; The<br /> standard of new fiction is above the &quot; average &quot;—<br /> &quot;an average which is no longer correct.&quot; And<br /> even supposing that a publisher pays more than<br /> he ought for one book, &quot;how does this affect the<br /> young author? Where the risk is so great it is<br /> almost a wonder that a new writer obtains any-<br /> thing at all for his first work. If he can find a<br /> publisher to take the chance he is indeed fortu-<br /> nate. If his book is a great success, he has his<br /> reward: he can dictate his own terms in future.&quot;<br /> The Daily News says that publishers have only<br /> themselves to thank if best books are not more in<br /> demand; and tells them that, when they have<br /> mastered the secret of the cheap newspaper, they<br /> will bring out the cheap book. &quot;The novel at a<br /> guinea and a half died hard in this country; the<br /> novel at five or six shillings still cumbers the<br /> earth.&quot;<br /> Mrs. Lecky writes on &quot;Modern Language<br /> Teaching in Longman&#039;s Magazine for June, and<br /> recommends all who are interested in the progress<br /> and education of our people, to take to heart these<br /> words from a recent speech of Sir William Har-<br /> court: &quot;The present defect of English education,<br /> from the top of the scale to the bottom, is our<br /> neglect of the cultivation of the modern lan-<br /> guages of the nations of the world.&quot; Our method<br /> has been wrong. Mrs. Lecky praises the Gouin<br /> method of teaching, which proceeds by gradual<br /> development. It is based on the natural pro-<br /> cess by which every infant begins to speak—<br /> that is, by learning the sounds through the ear<br /> before it knows how to read and write—and it<br /> makes the verb the pivot of the teaching.<br /> Eegarding the Universities Mrs. Lecky says &quot; it<br /> seems an anomaly that honours can be obtained<br /> in modern languages at Oxford without a viva<br /> race test, and that for the Cambridge tripos viva<br /> race also is optional, and that the results do not<br /> affect the class.&quot;<br /> Mr. E. V. Lucas has been publishing in the<br /> Cornhill Magazine (May and June) correspon-<br /> dence between Charles Lamb and his friend<br /> Robert Lloyd, the Quaker, and partner in the<br /> bookselling and printing business of Knott and<br /> Lloyd at Birmingham. The letters are full<br /> of good things. One of them shows Lamb&#039;s<br /> fondness for London to have been quite equal to<br /> that of Dr. Johnson. &quot;Give me the old book-<br /> stalls of London,&quot; he exclaims, &quot; a walk in the<br /> bright piazzas of Covent Garden. I defy a man<br /> to be dull in such places—perfect Mahometan<br /> paradises upon earth! I have lent out my heart<br /> with usury to such scenes from my childhood<br /> up, and have cried with fullness of joy at the<br /> multitudinous scenes of life in the crowded streets<br /> of ever dear London.&quot; In his last letter, dated<br /> January i, 1810, he gives an affecting picture of<br /> his home at 4, Inner Temple-lane. &quot;The feeling<br /> of home, which has been slow to come, has come<br /> at last. May I never move again, but may my<br /> next lodging be my coffin.&quot; Among his literary<br /> criticisms is that he &quot;seems to miss&quot; in Pope&#039;s<br /> &quot;Iliad&quot; translation &quot;a certain savage-like plain-<br /> ness of speaking in Achilles—a sort of indelicacy.<br /> The heroes in Homer are not half civilised: they<br /> utter all the cruel, all the selfish, all the mean<br /> thoughts even of their nature, which it is the<br /> fashion of our great men to keep in.&quot;<br /> A writer in Blackwood&#039;s for May casts the<br /> conscientious biographer into a very offensive light.<br /> He calls the literature &quot;parasitical,&quot; and applies<br /> such terms as &quot;questionable&quot; and &quot;destructive<br /> familiarity&quot; to the kind of biography to which<br /> nothing is too insignificant to include. &quot;It is<br /> good to know how any distinguished man looked<br /> and lived, and good to learn the conditions amid<br /> which his day&#039;s work was done. But it is enough<br /> to know him as friend knows friend; it is un-<br /> necessary, even undesirable, possibly offensive, to<br /> share the relationship and knowledge of his valet<br /> or his nurse.&quot;<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—Editors and Contributors.<br /> 1.<br /> MAY I make a few remarks on the List of<br /> Rules of Editors, published in your issue<br /> of May 2, for the sake of the young<br /> beginners in literature whose lot and whose risks<br /> are becoming worse as their numbers multiply?<br /> I have myself very little to complain of with<br /> regard to editors, who seem far better than their<br /> laws. I have been almost invariably kindly and<br /> courteously treated. It has however happened<br /> once or twice that my MSS. have been lost<br /> letters unanswered, payments forgotten, &amp;c.<br /> I notice that it is increasingly common for<br /> editors to repudiate all responsibility for MSS.<br /> Most of those in your List decline to return MSS.<br /> altogether; some, if stamps and envelopes are<br /> sent, endeavour to return them. Many insist on<br /> type-written copy.<br /> I know the worries of editors, and the rubbish<br /> they have to deal with, and the rules are made to<br /> save them trouble; all the same the worries to<br /> the author are greater and much more serious.<br /> Authors have a right to complain of these rules.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 20 (#32) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 20<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> MSS. are the author&#039;s bread. They are perish-<br /> able goods; they are submitted on approval, and<br /> this seems the only way to bring author and<br /> public together. In the editor&#039;s office they may<br /> be lost, burnt, or, worse, gutted; and there are<br /> the risks by post also.<br /> It may be replied, authors must retain copies of<br /> their MSS. But, as many MSS. have to travel a<br /> good deal for various reasons (was it not Currer<br /> Bell whose first work had to be sent to a dozen<br /> successive publishers&#039;{), I submit that this is a<br /> &quot;sweating&quot; system. An author may make a<br /> copy, or pay a typist to do it—and type-writing is<br /> certainly costly. He sends up his MS.; it is not<br /> returned—that is the rule—neither is it used.<br /> After a time, and after losing the return stamps,<br /> he sends off the other. Similar fate. How many<br /> copies is the poor young author to keep on the<br /> chance of rejection?<br /> Then there is the question of using the MS.<br /> elsewhere. How long is the author to wait till<br /> the editor or the publisher&#039;s reader has made up<br /> his mind?<br /> There is yet a worse risk, that, during the<br /> interval, the &quot;guts&quot; of the MS. are stolen, the<br /> material and the idea used up by the publisher&#039;s<br /> sister, or cousin, or aunt, and the original author<br /> has no redress.<br /> It is manifestly hard and contrary to the rules<br /> of business to send goods on approval without a<br /> guarantee, or to keep goods without paying for<br /> them, or to neglect to inform the owner whether<br /> his goods are marketable in that particular place<br /> or not. Especially in journalism both are fre-<br /> quently done and suffered; and often when the<br /> MS. &gt;** returned, the &quot;moment&quot; is past, and the<br /> subject has no chance.<br /> Many authors are of opinion that since sending<br /> up MSS. on approval is the only way, editors<br /> ought to be bound to take responsibility; and<br /> compelled, after agreeing to examine a MS., to<br /> return it or to pay for it within a certain fixed<br /> time. I should say a fortnight ought to suffice<br /> for decision in the case of a book, and three days<br /> in that of a newspaper article.<br /> I also have to corroborate another correspon-<br /> dent&#039;s complaint—that MSS. are returned<br /> damaged. I have seen in publishers&#039; rooms a<br /> MS. being read in company with a sandwich, for<br /> which it served as a plate. I have had MSS.<br /> returned to me marked with grease, and unfit to<br /> send elsewhere.<br /> It appears to me that, if a humble typewriter<br /> can afford to protect against loss, damage, or fire<br /> (and I hope cribbing), MSS. entrusted to her by<br /> a floating policy of insurance, the proprietor of a<br /> journal or a respectable publisher can do the<br /> same, and such insurance ought to be a sine qua<br /> non. M. E. Hawei?.<br /> ii.<br /> Mr. Herbert W. Smith sends a communication<br /> unfortunately too long for publication. He says,<br /> in answer to the question: &quot;How would he<br /> compel the editor to do this or that ?&quot;—that he<br /> would compel him by unanimous action on the<br /> part of authors. He thinks that the time has<br /> arrived for authors to take united action. I have<br /> long thought so, but I do not see many signs<br /> of such united action. One thing is hopeful,<br /> however: with men and women of letters action<br /> need not be universal. Everything that a trades-<br /> union can effect would be brought about by the<br /> union of fifty or sixty writers whose works are<br /> commercially valuable.<br /> On the score of unequal remuneration Mr.<br /> Smith claims that all trades are equal. But<br /> literature is not a trade. All professions are<br /> unequal: all works of art are unequal. Is a man<br /> who writes a play which runs a month to be paid<br /> as much as a man whose play ruus three years?<br /> Is the youngest artistwho exhibits in the Academy<br /> to be paid as much for his picture as the most<br /> distinguished R.A.?<br /> Dudley Warner once advocated the foundation<br /> of a literary union in which all the members should<br /> receive the same wages. A minimum scale of<br /> pay for magazine work would be a most desirable<br /> thing from many points of view, but it is im-<br /> possible to enforce it except for certain writers<br /> whose work is in vogue.<br /> Mr. Smith concludes as follows :—<br /> &quot;At the present moment neither law, public<br /> opinion, nor etiquette affords relief against the<br /> small worries, humiliations, and peculations to<br /> which the rank and file of authors are often<br /> subjected by unscrupulous, lazy, careless, and<br /> grossly ignorant dealers in their goods.<br /> &quot;Were the Society of Authors to determine in<br /> consultation with editors of repute upon a definite<br /> understanding with regard to delays in consider-<br /> ing MSS., delays in payment, and unequal<br /> remuneration, they would have achieved an end<br /> of very great importance. What respectable<br /> editors decreed, the tag-rag and bob-tail would<br /> find it expedient to obey. With growth and<br /> authority on its side, the Society of Authors<br /> might find itself capable of striking offenders &#039; off<br /> the Rolls&#039; in due time.&quot;<br /> in.<br /> My only reason for troubling you again is that<br /> several points have occurred to me since I wrote<br /> to you, particularly in view of the valuable com-<br /> munications you print from &quot;An Unofficial<br /> Receiver—of Editorial Regrets,&quot; and Mr. Herbert<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 21 (#33) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 21<br /> W. Smith. The first-named writer refers to a<br /> grievance of the highest importance—i.e., the<br /> work of native authors being excluded from<br /> columns which are used for the reproduction of<br /> articles stolen from American periodicals. Besides<br /> this the work of native authors is excluded from<br /> columns used, inter alia (I) for articles, tales,<br /> jokes, and pictures stolen—totally or in part as<br /> regards first-mentioned — from other English<br /> papers, and from all manner of foreign papers,<br /> the editor thinking, most erroneously, that if he<br /> acknowledges the source of such he is acting in<br /> an unexceptionable way; (2) for advertisements,<br /> even of the journal itself or of another publica-<br /> tion issued from the same office; (3) for the<br /> work of persons who are not genuine native<br /> authors, but belong to one of the following divi-<br /> sions—(a) individuals who have attained celebrity<br /> in some other walk, and are therefore exploited<br /> as writers by editors; (6) blacklegs, usually<br /> poetasters, who work, such as their work is, for<br /> nothing; (c) persons, usually poetasters again,<br /> who could not possibly have got their lucubra-<br /> tions accepted if they had not been relations or<br /> friends of the editor, or been able to bring some<br /> influence to bear on him—(4) for matter repro-<br /> duced from some back number of the paper itself<br /> or a sister periodical. In no other business in<br /> the world could this crambe repetita take place.<br /> In regard to what Mr. Smith says as to the pay-<br /> ment per column for articles, this should also be<br /> pointed out: A paper commences by paying, say,<br /> £1 is. a column. This is when its circulation is<br /> small, but it makes no addition no matter how<br /> large its circulation grows, and this though some<br /> of the contributors, whose payments it does not<br /> increase, have been the main creators of its<br /> prosperity.<br /> Another thing: the most tenth-rate actor can<br /> get free passes for himself and a friend to<br /> theatres, yet no editor thinks of putting even his<br /> best contributor on his free-list.<br /> In conclusion, I may say that before I die I<br /> hope to see some at least of the following reforms<br /> effected :—(1) Every line contributed to a paper<br /> paid for, including correspondence and matter<br /> contributed in competition; (2) every journalistic<br /> post put in the market, and not handed through<br /> backstairs influence to some played-out hack,<br /> some mere reporter, &#039;Varsity man or Scotsman;<br /> (3) no one but a qualified and registered journalist<br /> allowed to sell MSS. to a paper, just as only<br /> admitted solicitors can sell legal skill and know-<br /> ledge : these as a first instalment.<br /> Experto Ceede.<br /> P.S.—I should like to add that I think it<br /> should be made a penal offence for an editor to<br /> appropriate ideas from an article he does not<br /> accept, unless* before doing so lie had arranged<br /> to pay the author therefor. I could mention the<br /> editors of papers that make no scruple of doing<br /> this.<br /> IV.<br /> A correspondent, &quot;J. C. G\,&quot; writes in reply to<br /> the letter of Mr. Herbert W. Smith, to the<br /> following effect:<br /> (1.) Unsolicited contributions are not amongst<br /> the requirements of journals.<br /> (2.) All journals have a regular staff engaged<br /> to do the work.<br /> (3.) Unsolicited contributions are of &quot;the<br /> nature of an aggravation and an impertinence.&quot;<br /> (4.) Editors try sometimes out of courtesy to<br /> read the MSS. sent in, but have to desist out of<br /> regard to the interests of the journal.<br /> (5.) He suggests that it would be well to write<br /> and offer the editor first.<br /> [These points are put in the form of questions.<br /> Well, a simple reference to the table of contents<br /> for the last few months of any magazine would<br /> prove that there is no such thing as a regular staff<br /> to do the work. Out of every six months follow-<br /> ing, it would be extremely strange were the same<br /> name to occur twice.<br /> Contributions, as may be seen from the list<br /> published in our last number, are expected from<br /> writers uninvited.<br /> Editors practically undertake to read them all.<br /> To ask an editor if he will look at a MS., would<br /> be to give him double trouble, because he professes<br /> to read everything sent.—Ed.].<br /> II.—Mr. Punch and his Contributors.<br /> I consider that the writer of the article in<br /> your last issue, treating of the ways in which<br /> various journals undertake to deal with the MSS.<br /> of their contributors should have taken the<br /> trouble to verify his statements.<br /> I invite him to refer to the cover of Punch,<br /> where he will find this notice :—<br /> &quot;Communications or contributions, whether<br /> MS., printed matter, drawings, or pictures of any<br /> description, will not be returned unless accom-<br /> panied by a stamped and addressed envelope,<br /> cover, or wrapper.&quot;<br /> The writer of your article stated that they<br /> would not be returned under any conditions.<br /> I will ask you to be good enough to correct his<br /> inaccuracy by publishing this letter.<br /> A Member of the Staff of Punch.<br /> III.—The Roxburghe Press, Limited.<br /> In this month&#039;s issue of The Author a corre-<br /> spondent asks for advice as to how to proceed<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 22 (#34) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 22<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> with a view of recovering his MS., which he sent<br /> to the Roxburghe Press prior to that company&#039;s<br /> failure.<br /> I am informed by a member of the late staff<br /> of the Roxburghe Press that if &quot; Provincial &quot; and<br /> others in a like predicament apply to Messrs.<br /> Singleton and Co., of 4, Staples-inn, Holborn,<br /> the desired result will be obtained.<br /> May 18. Fred. J. May.<br /> IV.—&quot;The Author&quot; in the Libraries.<br /> I think you would receive many more com-<br /> plaints from struggling free lances as to the way<br /> they are treated if The Author was only read<br /> more extensively among them. As a matter of<br /> fact it ought to be in every public library in the<br /> Kingdom, whereas even in London, as far as my<br /> experience of a year back goes, it is only to be<br /> found in the Clerkenwell Free Library. In this<br /> town it is not taken by the authorities of the<br /> library but is presented to them, and naturally<br /> the donor pleases himself about when he brings<br /> it. E. C.<br /> Cheltenham.<br /> V.—Unmarketableness of Terse.<br /> The statement of Mr. Henley with regard to<br /> the sale of poetry urges me to air a long-felt<br /> grievance. Poetry does not sell for the simple<br /> reason that its price is prohibitive. Circulating<br /> libraries will not provide modern poetry, free<br /> libraries have very little, and the consequence is<br /> that, as wealth and a love of literature unfortu-<br /> nately seldom go together, modern poetry remains<br /> unread. I deeply deplore my own ignorance of<br /> our present poets, but I see no way of remedying<br /> it, as I cannot afford to buy their works at 5s.<br /> a volume. If they would but produce their<br /> poems at popular instead of prohibitive prices I<br /> am sure that they would find a public eager and<br /> willing to buy. One would have thought that<br /> the lesson had been learnt by now that a large<br /> circulation of cheap books pays better than the<br /> sale of a few expensive volumes, but the poets do<br /> not seem to realise it. F. M. K.<br /> VI.—The First Book.<br /> Although a loyal member of the Authors&#039;<br /> Society I sometimes wonder whether a young and<br /> unknown writer is wise in abiding by the prin-<br /> ciples advocated by that society too rigidly.<br /> In the May number of The Author appears a<br /> short story telling how a young writer is offered<br /> .£15 158. for the copyright of his first book.<br /> Twelve years ago, before I left Cambridge, and<br /> before I was out of my teens, I wrote a story for<br /> a boys&#039; paper. I was paid 30s. a number, but<br /> was careful to retain copyright. When the story<br /> was completed I sent it to a big publishing<br /> house. The reader&#039;s report was most eulogistic,<br /> but the house did not care for reprints, and I<br /> was requested to write a new story on the same<br /> lines. The pressure of journalistic work pre-<br /> vented this, but shortly afterwards another pub-<br /> lisher offered me £2 5 for the story. He wanted<br /> all rights. I believed in the story—I still believe<br /> in it. I rejected the offer. I have since sent my<br /> story to several publishers, but have not been<br /> able to get it read.<br /> The result is that it will probably never be<br /> published in book form. Now, had I accepted<br /> that offer of £25, and the book had succeeded,<br /> would not my position be better than it is to-day?<br /> I should probably now be living in Paris, writing<br /> fiction—the work I love—instead of toiling at<br /> mere journalistic hack work for £4 or .£5 a<br /> week. _i: H. J. A.<br /> VII.—Proposed Journal for Young Authors.<br /> I have forwarded you some circulars re the<br /> Pioneer paper, to which, I understand, you will<br /> refer elsewhere. May I be allowed to say, by<br /> way of comment, that a large number of young<br /> &quot;literarv aspirants &quot; are certain to eagerly accept<br /> the offer of &quot; Mr. Leigh, M.P.A.B.A. &quot;? For there<br /> is no doubt that a paper &quot;run&quot; on somewhat<br /> similar lines would be of immense benefit to the<br /> &quot;ambitious unknown.&quot;<br /> It should be remembered that a young and<br /> able, but inexperienced, writer has at present no<br /> means of obtaining that skilled revision and<br /> alteration of his work which would not only make<br /> it acceptable to the editors, but would show him<br /> his faults, and how they might be avoided or<br /> corrected. These faults he has to find out for<br /> himself—if he can—often after years of failure,<br /> poverty, and bitterness of spirit.<br /> What hundreds of struggling writers will look,<br /> probably in vain, for &quot;Mr. Leigh, M.P.A.P.A.,&quot;<br /> to accomplish, the Society of Authors could and<br /> should do, for those young authors whom it<br /> desires to help; that is, establish a journal in<br /> which their writings may appear, a journal, let<br /> us say, supplementary to The Author, to be called<br /> &quot;The Young Author.&quot; A fee, to be made as low<br /> as possible, would be paid by the writer for the<br /> correction of his MS. and the cost of its insertion.<br /> The articles must, of course, be short, and the<br /> editor would have the option of returning such<br /> as were hopeless, or required too much alteration.<br /> The paper should be edited by a capable and<br /> sympathetic senior, and be regularly forwarded to<br /> the magazine editors, &amp;c. The reading matter<br /> should be copyrighted, and the articles be eligible<br /> for republication by payment.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 23 (#35) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 23<br /> The &quot; Young Author &quot; should be published at<br /> cost price, the profit from advertisements, writers&#039;<br /> fees, and the sale of copies being arranged to<br /> balance the cost of production.<br /> I would suggest, as another feature of the<br /> paper, an &quot;Answers to Contributors&quot; page,<br /> where readers&#039; opinions on short stories or<br /> articles, poems, &lt;fcc., should be published on pay-<br /> ment by the writer of a small fee, thus adopting<br /> the present system of the Society in retail, instead<br /> of wholesale.<br /> I am aware that this sketch of the scheme is<br /> crude, and requires considerable working out. I<br /> have refrained from all argument in favour of<br /> my ideas, and from any elaboration of them, out<br /> of respect for your valuable space.<br /> H. A. Spurr.<br /> VIII.—Jane Austen.<br /> The following letter appeared recently in the<br /> Times -.—Among the distinguished natives of<br /> Hampshire who are buried in Winchester Cathe-<br /> dral there are few names more worthy of record<br /> than that of Jane Austen; yet the only memorial<br /> of her (beyond the stone slab which marks the<br /> site of her grave) is a brass tablet let into the<br /> wall, which was placed there by her nephew and<br /> biographer, the late Rev. J. E. Austen Leigh, in<br /> 1870.<br /> We feel that we shall be appealing to a large<br /> circle of warm admirers, who have been charmed<br /> and cheered by her work, if we ask for subscrip-<br /> tions to enable us to fill one of the windows in<br /> the Cathedral with painted glass in her memory.<br /> The selection of the window will depend upon<br /> the amount of support that we may receive. The<br /> cost of a window in the Lady Chapel is estimated<br /> at £600, one in the nave .£300. We may add<br /> that our proposal has the cordial approval of the<br /> Dean of Winchester.<br /> Contributions not exceeding five guineas may<br /> be paid to Messrs. Hoare, 37, Fleet-street,<br /> London, who have kindly consented to act as<br /> treasurers of the fund.<br /> northbrook.<br /> Selborne.<br /> W. W. B. Beach.<br /> Montagu G. Knight.<br /> BOOK TALE.<br /> THE DUKE of ARGYLL is bringing out,<br /> through Mr. Murray, a little book on<br /> &quot;Organic Evolution,&quot; which is the result<br /> of a controversy he held with Mr. Herbert<br /> Spencer a short time ago.<br /> Mr. Barrie has written an introduction for<br /> the posthumous volume by Mrs. Oliphant, &quot;A<br /> Widow&#039;s Tale and Other Stories.&quot; It takes the<br /> form of an appreciation of the author and her<br /> works.<br /> Mrs. Humphry Ward&#039;s new book is to be<br /> published on June 10. Its title is &quot;Helbeck of<br /> Bannisdale.&quot;<br /> A story of Cornish life, by Mr. J. H. Pearce,<br /> will be published shortly by Mr. Heinemann.<br /> &quot;Ezekiel&#039;s Sin &quot; is the title.<br /> A translation of M. Rostand&#039;s &quot;Cyrano de<br /> Bergerac&quot; is being brought out by Mr. Heine-<br /> mann.<br /> Owen Rhoscomyl has written a Welsh story,<br /> entitled &quot;The Shrouded Face,&quot; which Messrs.<br /> Pearson will issue immediately.<br /> Maxwell Gray&#039;s new book, to be out imme-<br /> diately, is called &quot;The House of Hidden<br /> Treasure.&quot;<br /> Mr. Joseph Hocking has been to Ireland col-<br /> lecting materials for a romance based upon<br /> certain aspects of monastic life. The story will<br /> be called &quot;The Scarlet Woman,&quot; and will first<br /> run serially. Mr. Hocking regards it as the most<br /> important he has undertaken.<br /> Mr. Richard Davey has written a book on<br /> Cuba, entitled &quot; Cuba, Past and Present,&quot; which<br /> will be issued by the firm of Chapman and Hall<br /> in a short time. The author has travelled in the<br /> island, and discusses its history from the begin-<br /> ning up to the present day of its difficulties.<br /> A work on the taking of Khartoum is already<br /> promised from the pen of Mr. G. W. Steevens,<br /> the special correspondent of the Daily Mail, and<br /> author of &quot; The Land of the Dollar&quot; and&#039; Egypt<br /> in 1898.&quot;<br /> Mr. Henry James&#039;s new volume of fiction is to<br /> be called &quot;The Two Magics.&quot; It will be pub-<br /> lished by Mr. Heinemann in the autumn.<br /> Mr. Henry Savage Landorhas in great measure<br /> recovered from the terrible injuries inflicted upon<br /> him by the Tibetans, and the experiences of the<br /> journey will be told in his book which Mr. Heine-<br /> mann will publish in the autumn. It will<br /> be translated for simultaneous publication in<br /> French, German, Hungarian, Bohemian, and<br /> probably Russian and Italian editions.<br /> Mr. Leslie Stephen&#039;s &quot;Essays&quot; will be pub-<br /> lished in the autumn.<br /> Mr. Stephen Gwynn has written a volume<br /> entitled &quot;Tennyson: a Critical Study,&quot; which<br /> Messrs. Blackie will publish in their Victorian<br /> Era series. Other works in this series will be<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 24 (#36) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &quot;Ireland during the Victorian Era,&quot; which will<br /> be written by Mr. J. A. R. Marriott: &quot;Pruden-<br /> tial Societies and Industrial Welfare,&quot; by Mr.<br /> E. W. Brabrook; and &quot;Gold Discoveries and<br /> their Influence on Commerce,&quot; by Mr. Moreton<br /> Frewen.<br /> New biographies are also in preparation by<br /> Messrs. James Nisbet and Co. They include, by<br /> Major Sharp Hume, &quot; The Great Lord Burghley:<br /> a Study in Elizabethan Statecraft,&quot; which is based<br /> largely upon public records, and on family papers<br /> at Hatfield and Burghley; by Mr. Hillaire Belloc,<br /> &quot;Danton&quot;; and by Mr. J. A. Hobson, &quot; Ruskin<br /> as a Social Reformer.&quot;<br /> A monograph of Mont Blanc has been written<br /> by Mr. Charles Edward Mathews, who has<br /> climbed the mountain eleven times and by five<br /> different routes. Mr. Mathews is a former presi-<br /> dent of the Alpine Club, and has made a special<br /> study of literature on the subject of his work.<br /> It will contain illustrations by Signor Sella and<br /> others, and be published by Mr. Unwin under the<br /> title &quot;The Annals of Mont Blanc.&quot;<br /> Two volumes of the definitive edition of Byron<br /> have been published by Mr. Murray—the first of<br /> the Poetry, edited by Mr. Hartley Coleridge, and<br /> the first of the Letters and Journals, which Mr.<br /> Rowland Prothero has edited. The latter con-<br /> tains 168 letters down to Aug. 22, 1811; while<br /> for the same period Moore&#039;s edition contains<br /> sixty-one, Halleck&#039;s seventy-eight, and Mr. Hen-<br /> ley&#039;s of eighteen months ago, eighty-eight. A<br /> mass of material dealing more or less directly<br /> with Byron&#039;s life has for the first time been<br /> accessible to Mr. Prothero, it having been accumu-<br /> lated by Mr. Murray&#039;s father and grandfather.<br /> &quot;Through the letters,&quot; says Mr. Prothero, &quot;a<br /> truer conception of Byron can be formed than<br /> any impression which is derived from Dallas,<br /> Leigh Hunt, Medwin, or even Moore.&quot; In his<br /> preface the editor quotes the following letter of<br /> Byron&#039;s father, written to his sister Mrs. Leigh<br /> when the poet was but three years old. It is<br /> dated from Valenciennes, Feb. 16, i79i,andthe<br /> only reference to his son throughout a whole<br /> bundle of letters to the same correspondent is<br /> contained in it:<br /> Have you never received any letters from me by way of<br /> Bologne? I have sent two. For God&#039;s sake send me some,<br /> as I have a great deal to pay. With regard to Mrs. Byron,<br /> I am glad she writes to you. She is very amiable at a<br /> distance; but I defy you and all the Apostles to live with<br /> her two months, for, if anybody could live with her, it was<br /> me. Mais jeu de Mains, jeu de Vilains. For my son, I am<br /> happy to hear he is well; but for his walking, &#039;tis impos-<br /> sible, as he is club-footed.<br /> Jane Austen&#039;s works are being published, in a<br /> Winchester edition of ten volumes, by Mr.<br /> Grant Richards. A feature is to be made of the<br /> production, and the printers, Constable, of Edin-<br /> burgh, will use the same type as they did for the<br /> Edinburgh edition of Stevenson.<br /> Mr. Zangwill&#039;s separate volumes, &quot;The<br /> Bachelors&#039; Club&quot; and &quot;The Old Maids&#039; Club,&quot;<br /> will be published in one by Mr. Heinemann under<br /> the title &quot; The Celibates&#039; Club.&quot;<br /> &quot;George Egertou&#039;s&quot; first long story is about<br /> ready. It deals with women&#039;s life and work,<br /> both in this country and in America, is called<br /> &quot;The Wheel of God,&quot; and will be published by<br /> Mr. Grant Richards.<br /> Mr. Conan Doyle is publishing through Messrs.<br /> Smith Elder a volume of poems under the title<br /> &quot;Songs of Action.&quot;<br /> Simultaneously with the opening of the Wagner<br /> cycle at Covent Garden this month, when so-<br /> many of the Bayreuth methods .and appliances<br /> will be in use, Mr. Edwin O. Sachs is issuing a<br /> large folio volume entitled &quot; Stage Construction.&quot;<br /> It will contain two hundred drawings, photo-<br /> graphs, and diagrams of the great stages of<br /> Europe and London, and in his introduction the&#039;<br /> author of the monumental &quot;Modern Opera<br /> Houses and Theatres &quot; will deal with scenic art<br /> and the various developments of stage equip-<br /> ment. The book will be published by Mr.<br /> Batsford.<br /> &quot;Cycling for Everybody,&quot; by the well-known<br /> authority Mr. Lacy Hillier, is a new book which<br /> Messrs. Chapman and Hall are to issue imme-<br /> diately.<br /> Professor George Henslow has written a book,<br /> to which Professor Skeat contributes an introduc-<br /> tion and notes, on &quot;Medical Works of the<br /> Fourteenth Century.&quot; This consists of tran-<br /> scripts from four manuscripts of the time of<br /> Wiclif and Chaucer, three of which are in the<br /> British Museum, and the fourth in the possession<br /> of Professor Henslow himself. They illustrate<br /> the crudeness of the mediaeval conceptions of the<br /> value of plants as drugs, and the recipes are<br /> remarkable for the general absence of any men-<br /> tion of the nauseous substances recommended by<br /> some apothecaries of a later day. The work will<br /> be published by Messrs. Chapman and Hall.<br /> Mr. Lawrence Binyon is issuing a &quot;Second<br /> Book of London Visions&quot; soon in the Shilling<br /> Garland series published by Mr. Mathew. The<br /> &quot;First Book &quot; appeared two years ago.<br /> Mr. R. Lydekker is following his work on &quot; The<br /> Deer of all Lands &quot; with a companion sumptuous<br /> volume on &quot; Wild Oxen, Sheep, and Goats of all<br /> Lands.&quot; It will contain, like the earlier work, a<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 25 (#37) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 25<br /> number of photographs by the Duchess of Bed-<br /> ford, who possesses at Woburn a fine collection<br /> of deer and wild animals.<br /> Mr. Cunninghame Graham is writing a book<br /> on his recent adventures in the south of Morocco.<br /> Disguised as an Arab, he attempted to reach the<br /> &quot;sacred city&quot; of Tarudant, the capital of the<br /> Sua province; but, while crossing the Atlas<br /> mountains, he was recognised as a European and<br /> taken prisoner. His book will be called &quot; Mogreb<br /> El Acksa.&quot;<br /> The first volume of the &quot;English Dialect Dic-<br /> tionary,&quot; edited by Professor Joseph Wright, and<br /> published by Mr. Henry Frowde, is now com-<br /> pleted. It contains 17,519 simple and compound<br /> words and 2248 phrases, illustrated by 42,915<br /> quotations, with the exact sources from which<br /> they have been obtained.<br /> Mrs. Richmond Ritchie gives some further<br /> interesting details of Thackeray in the second<br /> volume of the biographical edition of his works,<br /> namely, &quot;Pendennis,&quot; which was published a<br /> fortnight ago. Thackeray wrote to his mother<br /> in the summer of 1848, proposing that they<br /> should take a house at Brighton, &quot; or somewhere<br /> where I can work upon &#039; Pendennis,&#039; which is to<br /> be the name of the new book.&quot; He suggested a<br /> house at .£60 a year:<br /> As for the dignity, I don&#039;t believe it mitterj a pinch of<br /> snuff. Tom Carlyle Uvea in perfect dignity in a little .£40<br /> honse at Chelsea, with a snuffy Scotch maid to open the<br /> door, and the best company in England ringing at it. It is<br /> only the second or third chop great folks who care about<br /> show. &quot;And why don&#039;t yon live with a maid yourself?&quot;<br /> I think I hear somebody saying. Well, I can&#039;t; I want a<br /> man to be going my own messages, which ocoupy him pretty<br /> well. There must be a cook, and a woman about the<br /> children, and that horse is the best doctor I get iu London;<br /> in fine, there are a hundred good reasons for a lazy, liberal,<br /> not extravagant, but costly way of life.<br /> The third and final portion of the great Ash-<br /> burnham Library was sold at Sotheby&#039;s during<br /> the past month. The bidding was keen, and the<br /> prices remarkable. Among the notable lota sold<br /> were a good copy of the First Folio Shakespeare<br /> (1623), .£585, bought by Sir Arthur Hodgson for<br /> presentation to the Shakespeare Library at<br /> Stratford-on-Avon; a fine and perfect copy of<br /> the rare Third Folio Shakespeare (1664), ,£190;<br /> two books from the press of the first printer<br /> who set up in the City of London, William de<br /> Machlinia, namely, &quot;Speculum Chiistiani&quot; (about<br /> 1484), .£230, and a Book of Sentences from<br /> Terence in Latin and English, thirty-two leaves,<br /> £201; a very rare example of Caxton&#039;s press,<br /> &quot;Speculum Vitse Christi,&quot; one of three perfect<br /> copies known (about 1488), .£510; an uncut copy<br /> of the first edition of Sir Walter Scott&#039;s<br /> &quot;Waverley&quot; (1814), .£78, a record price; a<br /> beautiful set of the first five editions of Walton&#039;s<br /> &quot;Compleat Angler&quot; (1653 to 1676), .£800; an<br /> imperfect copy of Chaucer&#039;s &quot; Canterbury Tales,&quot;<br /> from Caxton&#039;s press (1478) wanting seventy-<br /> seven leaves, .£230; a fine and perfect copy of a<br /> very rare Caxton, &quot;The XII. Proflites of Tri-<br /> bulaeyon&quot; (1490), a pamphlet of thirty-two<br /> pages, .£310; a fine copy of the first edition of<br /> &quot;Valturius De Re Militari&quot; (1472), remarkable<br /> as being the first book with woodcuts executed<br /> in Italy, .£219; an imperfect copy of Gower&#039;s<br /> &quot;Confessio Amantis,&quot; printed by Caxton (1483),<br /> wanting forty-one leaves, £100; Voraigne&#039;s<br /> &quot;La Legende Dorce les Saints et Saintes&quot;<br /> (Paris, 1493), with 158 richly-painted and illumi-<br /> nated miniatures and figures of saints, .£165.<br /> The whole collection took twenty days to disperse,<br /> and the sale first began in June last year. There<br /> were 4075 lots, which realised .£62,712.<br /> Mr. Martin A. Buckmaster has written a text-<br /> book on &quot;Elementary Architecture,&quot; which will<br /> certain thirty-eight full-page illustrations, and be<br /> published by the Clarendon Press.<br /> Mr. F. G. Kitton&#039;s work &quot;Charles Dickens and<br /> His Illustrators,&quot; which is nearly ready, will<br /> contain a number of unpublished letters relating<br /> to the illustrations, by Dickens and the various<br /> artists engaged upon the novels. The principal<br /> contributors are of course Cruikshank and<br /> &quot;Phiz,&quot; wh i between them illustrated seventeen<br /> of Dickens&#039;s books. About forty drawings in<br /> pen and ink, pencil, and wash by these artists<br /> are to be given for the first time in Mr. Kitton&#039;s<br /> work, which will be published by Mr. George<br /> Redway.<br /> Geoffrey Mortimer has sold serial rights of a<br /> tale, &quot;The Misanthrope of Mor Ynys,&quot; to the<br /> Weekly Times and Echo. The story is one of<br /> adventure among the fisherfolk of an island off<br /> the coist of Carnarvonshire, and the opening<br /> chapter will appear at the end of this month or<br /> early in July.<br /> Mrs. Edith E. Cuthell&#039;s new children&#039;s story,<br /> &quot;When I was a Little Girl,&quot; will be published in<br /> the autumn by the S.P.C.K. It is partly auto-<br /> biographical, the adventures of a naughty child.<br /> Mrs. Cuthell&#039;s soldier-children story, &quot;Only a<br /> Guardroom Dog,&quot; is in a second edition.<br /> Mrs. Pennell is writing a volume on litho-<br /> graphy, the invention of Aloys Senefelder. Mr.<br /> .Topeph Pennell will contribute examp&#039;.es of, as he<br /> prefers to call it, the art of &quot;poly-autography.&quot;<br /> He has often declared that the effects producible<br /> by an artist in lithography amount to a thorough<br /> vindication of the choice of those who use it.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 26 (#38) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 26<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Professor Mahaffy responded for Literature at<br /> the Royal Academy banquet. In the course of<br /> his reply he said that when he tried to personify<br /> the literature of the present day, he seemed to<br /> behold a middle-aged dame who had grown so<br /> enormously stout with constant cramming that<br /> her extremities were becoming flabby and cold,<br /> and we began to fear a degeneration at the heart.<br /> If one was really solicitous for the health of this<br /> personage, it was obvious that one must seek to<br /> diminish the quantity and improve the quality of<br /> her tissues. He could, he thought, recommend<br /> some drastic treatment by which some improve-<br /> ment might be effected in her health, but that<br /> was not the place to discuss medical prescrip-<br /> tions, still less to describe to that august assembly<br /> the probable action of these remedies upon the<br /> human frame.<br /> Colonel Sir George Sydenham Clarke has written<br /> a short history on the very important subject of<br /> Russian Sea Power. It will be brought out by<br /> Mr. Murray in a few days.<br /> Mr. Sidney Colvin expects to have his biography<br /> of Robert Louis Stevenson ready for publication<br /> in the autumn.<br /> A new volume of poetry by Mr. Henry Rose,<br /> author of &quot;Summer Dreams,&quot; &amp;c., will be pub-<br /> lished by Messrs. Kegan Paul and Co., entitled<br /> &quot;Willow Vale.&quot;<br /> Mr. William Black&#039;s new Highland novel<br /> &quot;Wild Eelin,&quot; will be published early in the<br /> autumn by Messrs. Sampson Low. It is being<br /> dramatised in New York, where, and in Edin-<br /> burgh, it has been running serially. &quot;The Pride<br /> of Jennico,&quot; the romance by Agnes and Egerton<br /> Castle, is also being adapted for a New York<br /> stage.<br /> THE BOOKS OF THE MONTH.<br /> [April 25 to May 23.—350 Books.]<br /> Abbott, T. K. Do this in Remembrance of Me.&quot; Should it iie<br /> &#039;•Offer This&quot;? 1/. Longman.<br /> Abney, W. de W. The Barnet Book of Photography. 1- Lund.<br /> Addis, W. E. (tr. and ed.). Documents of the Hexateuch. Vol.11.<br /> 10/6. Nutt.<br /> Adler, C, and Ramsay, A. Told In the Coffee-House: Turkish<br /> Tales. 3/- Macmilian.<br /> Aglcn, A. S. Lessons In Old Testament History. 4 6. Arnold.<br /> Agnew. P. L. A Bun Through &quot;The Nibelung&#039;s Bing.&quot; 27- Bradbury.<br /> Alderson, E. A. H. With the Mounted Infantry and the Mashona-<br /> land Field Force, 1896. 10/6. Methuen.<br /> Allen, J. B. (ed.) Lives from Cornelius Nepos. 1&#039;6 Frowde.<br /> Allen, W. O. B., and McOlure. E. History of the S.P.C.K., 1686-1896.<br /> 10,6 8.P.C.K.<br /> Andom, R. Side Slips: or Misadventures on a Bicycle. 1/6 Pearson.<br /> Anonymous. Advent Sermons on Church Befotm. 4/P. Longman.<br /> Anonymous. Tales from McClures, Romance ; Adventure; Humour.<br /> the West. 4 vols. 5/- net- Gay.<br /> Anonymous. Eight Photo-Lithographs of Monumental Brasses in<br /> Westminster Abbey. 5/- King&#039;s Lynn: E. M. Beloe, jun.<br /> Anonymous. All We Like Sheep. 2/- Kelvin Glen.<br /> Anonymous. The Life of the Bight Hon. W. E. Gladstone. 1 -<br /> Bon tied ge<br /> Armour, M. The Shadow of Love, and other Poems. 5/- Duckworth.<br /> Armstrong, R. A. Faith and Doubt in the Century&#039;s Poets. 2/6.<br /> Clarke.<br /> Ashley, T. Sir Tristram. 3/6 Ward and L.<br /> Astronomical Observations made at the Observatory of Cambridge<br /> under the superintendence of J. C. Adams. Vol. 23, for years<br /> 1872-5. 15/- Clay.<br /> Anden, H. W. Greek Unseens for Higher Forms. 2/6 Blackwood.<br /> Auden, H. W. Higher Latin Prose. 2/6. Blackwood.<br /> Bailey, L. H. and others. Garden Making. 47- net. Macmillan.<br /> Baker, W. M. Examples In Analytical Conies for Beginners. 2 6<br /> Bell.<br /> Banister, H. C. (ed. by S. Maepherson). Interludes. 5/- net. Bell..<br /> Barker, S. D. Mars. 6/- Hutchinson.<br /> Barker, H. J. The Comic Side of School Life. 6d. Jarrold.<br /> Harnett, Edith A. The Champion In the Seventies. 6/- Heinemann.<br /> Bartram, George. The White-headed Boy. 6/- Unwln.<br /> Bass, Florence. Nature Stories for Young Beaders. 2 6. Ishister.<br /> Bastion, H. C. Treatise on Aphasia and other Speech Defects. 15-<br /> Lewle.<br /> Beazley, C. R. John and Sebastian Cabot. 5/- Unwin.<br /> Beddard, F. E. Elementary Practical Zoology. 2/6. Longman.<br /> Bennett, R. and Elton, J. History of Corn-milling. Vol. I. 10/6 net.<br /> Simpkin.<br /> Berwick, J. A Philosopher&#039;s Romance. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Besant, W. H. Elementary Conica. 2/6. Bell.<br /> Betham-Edwards, M. Reminiscences. 15/- net. Bedway.<br /> Beven, T. The Law of Employers&#039; Liabllity, Ac. Waterlow and<br /> Layton.<br /> Bicdermann, W. (tr. by F. A. Welby). Electro-Physiology. Vol. n.<br /> 17/- net Macmillan.<br /> Bird, R. More Law Lyrics. 3/- Blackwood.<br /> Blackwell, Dr. E. Scientific Method in Biology, 2 - Stock.<br /> Blake, C. M. Tephl: an Armenian Bomsnce. 1/6. Partridge.<br /> Blaikie, W. G. David Brown, Professor and Principal of Free<br /> Church College, Aberdeen. A Memoir. 6/- Hodder.<br /> Blanchan, NeHje. Bird Neighbours. Low,<br /> Blass, Frederick. Philology of the Gospels. 4&#039;6 n&#039;.-t Macmillan.<br /> Bllssett, Nellie K. The Concert-Director. A Novel. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Block, Pkilipp. Memoir of Hf iniich Graetz. 3/6 net. Nutt.<br /> Bohm-Bawerk, E. (tr. by Alice M. Macdonald). Karl Marx and Uie<br /> Close of his System. 6/- Unwin.<br /> Bourchier, M. H. The Adventures of a Goldsmith. 6 - Mathews.<br /> Bowyer, Lady. The Divine Romance of Love and War. 2/6.<br /> Gutenberg Press.<br /> Bridgett, T. E. (ed ). Characteristics from the Writings of Cardinal<br /> Wiseman. 6/- Burns and O.<br /> Brierley, J. Studies of the Soul. 6/- Clarke.<br /> Bright, O. Submarine Telegraphs. 63 -net. Lockwood<br /> Brown, V. Ordeal by Compassion. 3/6. Lane.<br /> Brune, F. Vaussore. 6/- Methuen.<br /> Bryant, Marguerite. A Woman&#039;s Piivilege. 6 - Innes.<br /> Burke, J. Change of Abso-ption produced bv Fluorescence. 1 &#039;-<br /> Dulau.<br /> Burrow, C. K. The Fire of Life. 6/- Duckworth.<br /> Byron, Lord, the Works of. Letters and Journals. Vol.1. Ed. by<br /> Rowland E. Prothero. 6/- Murray.<br /> Caldecott, A. The Church In the West Indies. 3/6. S.P.C.K.<br /> Calderwood, H. David Hume. Famous Scots Scries. 1/6. Oliphant.<br /> Campbell, Lewis (ed.). iEschyli Tragcedias. 5/- Macmillan.<br /> Cassal, Hans J. S. Workshop Makeshifts. 2/6. L. U. Gill.<br /> Chambers, R. W. Lorraine: A Romance. 6 - Putnam.<br /> Chapman, J. J. Emerson, and Other Easays. 3/6. Nutt.<br /> Clark, C. The Story of an Ocean Tramp. 6 - Downey.<br /> Clarke, R. F. Science of Law and Law Making. 17/- net. Macmillan.<br /> I&#039;larkson, A. An Atlas of Histology. 9/-net. Simpkin.<br /> Coles. A. C. The Blcod: How to Examine and Diagnose its Diseases.<br /> 10/6 Churchill.<br /> Conder, C. R. The Hlttltes and their Languages. 7/6. Blackwood.<br /> Conway, Sir M. With Ski and Sledge over Arctic Glaciers. 6/-<br /> Dent.<br /> Conybsare, F. C. (ed. and tr.). Key of Truth: A Manual of the<br /> Pauheian Church of Armenia. 15/- net. Frowde.<br /> Cook, Lady. Essays on Social Topics. 3/6. Union Publishing Co.<br /> Cookson. C. (ed.). Essays on Secondary Education. 4 6. Frowde.<br /> Cooper, Jessie G. Christabel. 1/6. Partridge.<br /> Cornford, L. Cope. Sons of Adversity. 6/- Methuen.<br /> Cotton, W. Everybody&#039;s Guide to Money Matters. 2/6. Warn*:.<br /> Crowninshield, Mrs. S. Where the Trade-Wind Blows. 67-<br /> Macmillan<br /> Culmsee, V. The Pocket Interpreter. 1/- Nutt.<br /> Cust, L. (ed. by S. Colvin). History of the Society of Dilettanti.<br /> 25/- net. Macmillan.<br /> Craddbck, C. E. The Juggler. 6/- Gay.<br /> Craig, J. D. John Maverell: A Tale of the Riviera. 6.- Stock.<br /> Crookall, L. British Guiana. 6/- Unwln.<br /> Dalziel, O. Unconsidered Trifles. Poems. 5/- Stock.<br /> Davis, Florence H. Silver Thorns. 1/6. Saxon.<br /> De Coubertln, Baron Pierre (tr. by I. F. Hapgood). The Evolution<br /> of France under the Third Bepublic. 10/6. Bowden.<br /> De Grafflgny, H. (od. by H. G. Elliot). Industrial Electricity. 2 ti.<br /> Whittaker.<br /> De Quetteville, P. W. Short Studies on Vital Subjects. 6/- Stock.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 27 (#39) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 27<br /> Dodge, W. P. The Sea of Love. 1/6. Long.<br /> Douglas. R. B. (tr. and ed.). A French Volunteer of the War of<br /> Independence. 6/- Bilsb.<br /> Dovrie, Monie Muriel. The Crook of the Bough. 8/. Methuen.<br /> Drummoml, W. H. The Hahitant, and other French-Canadian<br /> Poems, 12/6. Putnam.<br /> Drury, W. D. Home Gardening. 1/- L. U. Gill.<br /> Duerdon, J. E. Jamaican Actiniaria. Part I. : Zoanthrc 3/-<br /> Williams and N.<br /> Da Maurier, George. Social Pictorial Satire. 5/- Harper.<br /> Dnrand, E. D. Finances of New York City. 7/6 net. Macmillan.<br /> Eaxnes, J. Sermons to Boys and Girls 3/6. Allenson.<br /> Edwards, E. T., and Haite\ G. C. Side-lights of Nature in Quill and<br /> Crayon. 6 - Paul.<br /> Ellis, Edith. Seaweed: a Cornish Idyll. 3/6 net. University Press.<br /> Ellis, E. S. A Strange Craft and Its Wonderful Voyage. 2/6.<br /> Cassell.<br /> Evans, A. J., and Fearenslde, C. S. The Intermediate Text-Book of<br /> English History. Vol. IV.: 1714-1837. 4/6. dive.<br /> Exell, J. S. The Biblical Illustrator. Revelation. 7/6. Nisbet.<br /> Fairbanks, A. The First Philosophers of Greece. 7/6. Paul.<br /> Farrer, Lord. Studies in Currency, 1898. 12/6 net Macmillan.<br /> Fenn, G. M. The Case of Ailsa Gray. 2/- White.<br /> Ferguson, R. S. Carlisle Cathedral. 1/- net. Isblster.<br /> Ferriday, M., and Boden, T. H. The ,•Methodical&quot; Guide to Model<br /> Drawing. 2/6 net. Simpkin.<br /> Filbner, H. R. Wax-Bills, Grass-Finches, and Mannikins. 1/- Betts.<br /> Finny, V. G. The Revolt of the Young MacCormacks. 2/6. Macmillan.<br /> Fisher, L. M. Imperial Recitations for Infants, Ac. 1/6. Curwen.<br /> Flagg, W. J. Yoga, or Transformation. 15/- net. Redway.<br /> Forsyth, A. R. Memoir on the Integration of Partial Differential<br /> Equations of the Second Order in Three Independent Variables.<br /> 4/- Dnlau.<br /> Foster, E. The Art of Conversation. 1/- Simpkin.<br /> Fowler, C. B. Church Architecture. 6d. Iliffe.<br /> Fowler, Ellen T. Concerning Isabel Carnaby. 6/- Hoddor.<br /> Fowler, the late J. ltaken chiefly from the Notes of). Side-Lights on<br /> the Conflicts of Methodism—1827-1852. 8/- Cassell.<br /> Francis, M. E. Miss Erin. 6/- Methuen.<br /> Fraser, Mrs. Hugh. The Looms of Time. 6/- Isblster.<br /> iiale. Courtenay. Who is the Christian? 1/- Blades.<br /> Gardner, E. G. Dante&#039;s Ten Heavens: a Study of the &quot; Paradlso.&quot;<br /> 12/- Constable,<br /> fiarland, G. V. The Problems of Job. 6/- Nisbet.<br /> Geden, A. S. Studies in Comparative Religion. 2/6. Kelly.<br /> George. C. Unity in Religion. 1/- Sonnenschein.<br /> George, Henry. The Science of Political Economy. 7 6 Paul.<br /> Ghose, M Love-Songs and Elegies. 1/- net. Mathews.<br /> &lt; iibson, J. and James, W. T. Latin at Sight. 2/6. Cornish.<br /> Gibson, J. and James, W. T. Latin Betranslation. 3&#039;6. Cornish.<br /> Gilbert, H. M. Of Necessity. 3 6. Lane.<br /> Gilman, H. Hassan, a Fellah. 7/6. Gay.<br /> Oinsbnrg, B. W. Hints on Legal Duties of Shipmasters. 4/6.<br /> Giiffln.<br /> Gladden, W. The Christian Pastor and the Workiog Church. 10/6.<br /> Clark.<br /> Golm, R. (tr. by E. Fowler). The Old Adam and the New Eve.<br /> 3:6. Heinemann.<br /> Gooch, G. P. History of English Democratic Ideas in 17th Century.<br /> 57- Clay,<br /> Goodchild, J. A. The Light of the West. Part I.: The Dannite<br /> Colony. 5/- Paul.<br /> Goode, U. B. The Smithsonian Institution, 1816-1896. 72 - net.<br /> Wesley.<br /> Gore, Charles (ed.). Essays in Aid of the Reform of the Church.<br /> 10,6. Murray.<br /> Gould, N. The Famous Match. 4/6. Routledge.<br /> Graham, David. Bizzio: an HistoricalTragedy. .V-net. Constable.<br /> Grant, M. A Rara Avis; or. Who Wins. 1/- Moran.<br /> Grierson. R. Ballvgowna. 1/- Moran.<br /> Oriffis, W. E. The Pilgrims in thslr Three Homes. -V- net. Gay.<br /> Grinnell, G. B„ and Roosevelt, T. (cds ). Trail and Camp Fire. 15/-<br /> Douglas.<br /> Gunter, A. C. Billy Hamilton. A Novel. 2/- Routledge.<br /> Gutch, C. Sermons. With Memoir of Author. 6/- Longman.<br /> Hackwood. F. W. New Object Lessons : Animal Life. 2/6. Pearson.<br /> Hair, J. Regent Square. *0 Years of a London Congregation. 6/<br /> Nisbet.<br /> Hannan. C. The Betrothal of James. 3/6. Bliss.<br /> Hapgood, Norman. Literary Statesmen and Others. 6/- Duckworth.<br /> Harris, M. D. Life in an Old English Town. 4/6. Sonnenschein.<br /> Harrison, R. L. The Gospel according to St. Matthew, as Inter-<br /> Sreted to B. L. Harrison by the Light of the Godly Experience of<br /> ri Parananda. 7/6. Paul.<br /> Hawthorne, J. A Fool of Nature. 1/- Downey.<br /> Hazlitt, W. O. Leisure Intervals. 6/- Maurice,<br /> lieadlam, C. Prayers of the Saints. 5/- net. Roblnson.<br /> Henderson, J. M. (ed.). Chronicles of Kartdale. 3/6. Morison.<br /> Henderson, W. J. What Is Good Music? 5/- Murray.<br /> Hennessey, George. Novum Repertorium Eccleslasticum Parochialo<br /> Londinense; or, London Diocesan Clergy Succession from the<br /> Earliest Time to the year 1898. 63/- net. Sonnenschein.<br /> Henniker, Florence. Sowing the Sand. 3/6. Harper.<br /> Henty, G.; Fenn, G. M.; anil Higginson, J. A. Through Fire and<br /> Storm. 3 i!. Partridge.<br /> Hewlett, M. The Forest Lovers. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Hickson, Mrs. Murray. Shadows of Life. 3 6. Lane.<br /> Hill, Headon. Spectre Gold. 0/. Cassell.<br /> Hillier, G. L., and Bramson, W. G. H. Amateur Cycling. I/- Dean.<br /> Hinkson, H. A. Up for the Green. 6/- Lawrence.<br /> Hlrd, F. The Cry of the Children. 1/- Bowden.<br /> Hodder, E. (compiler). Book of Uncommon Prayers. 5/- Virtue.<br /> Hooper, F., and Graham, J. Beginners&#039; Guide to Office Work. 1/-<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Hope, A. R. Mr. Dalton&#039;s Prescription, Ac, 2/- S. S. Union.<br /> Horton, B. F. The Conquered World, Ac. 1/6. Clarke.<br /> Horton, R. F. England&#039;s Danger. &lt;Jd. Clarke.<br /> Horton, W. T., and Yeats, W. B. Book of Images. 2,6 net.<br /> Unicorn Press.<br /> Howe, H. A. Elements of Descriptive Astronomy. 7,6. Philip.<br /> Howe, J. L. Bibliography of the Metals of the Platinum Group.<br /> 6/- net. Wesley.<br /> Huddilston, J. H. 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318	https://historysoa.com/items/show/318	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 02 (July 1898)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+02+%28July+1898%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 02 (July 1898)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1898-07-01-The-Author-9-2					29–56																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1898-07-01">1898-07-01</a>							2			18980701	TTbe Hutbot\<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. 2.] JULY i, 1898. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only. ^<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> Ij^OE some years it has been the practioe to insert, in<br /> ! every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices, &amp;o., for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the trioks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to carry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) 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From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objeoted that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> Ii 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 30 (#42) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 3o THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> I. &quot;T7WERY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advice<br /> Bought is such as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any oost to the member.<br /> 2. Bemember that questions connected with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. 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The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudulent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Bemember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advanoing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that yon may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Society now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> communioate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, Ac.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to oome, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039;<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanced 1<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correct: as near as is passible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of oourse, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6*. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> The Editor is always glad to receive short papers and<br /> communications on all subjects connected with literature<br /> from members and others. Nothing can do more good to<br /> the Society than to make The Author complete, attractive,<br /> and interesting. Will those who are willing to aid in this<br /> work send thoir names and the special subjects on which<br /> they are willing to write?<br /> ;»•&lt;:<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> 1.—Report of the Sub-Committee on the<br /> Proposals of the Booksellers&#039; Associa-<br /> tion, Approved by the Committee.<br /> THE Sub-Committee for the consideration of<br /> the discount and other methods connected<br /> with the bookselling trade have had under<br /> their consideration a scheme which has been pre-<br /> pared by two or three booksellers, considered by<br /> the Booksellers&#039; Association, and by one meeting<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 31 (#43) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 3»<br /> (at least) of local booksellers, by whom it has been<br /> approved.<br /> The objects of the scheme are as follows :—<br /> (1) To give booksellers the same profit off all<br /> books (except educational books at 6*.<br /> and under) that they at present receive<br /> off 6*. novels; while the publishers are<br /> not asked to give better terms than they<br /> do at present.<br /> (2) To enable booksellers to charge more for<br /> credit than for cash.<br /> Scheme.<br /> I. Odd books to be abolished, and all looks to<br /> lie supplied at the average present terms.<br /> II. The invoiced price of each book to be the<br /> lowest cash price to the public. (This rule not<br /> necessarily to apply to books supplied in bulk to<br /> schools and School Boards.)<br /> Thus—<br /> (a) Net books would be invoiced at full pub-<br /> lished prices.<br /> (ft) Novels and similar non-net books at 6s.<br /> and under would be invoiced at 2 5 per<br /> cent. off published prices.<br /> (r) Non-net books above 6s. (on which the<br /> price to the public does not need to be<br /> &quot;cut so fine &quot;) would be invoiced at not<br /> more than 2d. in the i*. off published<br /> prices.<br /> III. A. minimum trade discount of 20 per cent.<br /> to be allowed at settlement to those booksellers<br /> icho agree not to sell books to the public below the<br /> invoiced price, and to them only. (In the case of<br /> educational books published at 6s. and under, the<br /> discount at settlement might be 15 per cent.<br /> instead of 20 per cent.).<br /> The settlement discount for prompt payment<br /> might be arranged by publishers and booksellers<br /> individually.<br /> A Specimen Invoice submitted with the &quot;Scheme.&#039;&#039;<br /> Thus. To A. B. (Bookseller).<br /> &quot;Tom Jones,&quot; a novel, 6s. 4*. 6d.<br /> Terms.—A trade discount of 20 per cent. will be<br /> allowed off this amount conditionally that the<br /> books are not sold beloio the invoiced price of<br /> 4s. 6d. Acceptance of goods to be deemed<br /> agreement. In addition, a settlement discount<br /> of 5 per cent. for prompt payment after the<br /> monthly statement is received.*<br /> The objects of this Scheme must commend<br /> themselves to all who are interested in the welfare<br /> • By the words &quot;the books&quot; is meant &quot;this book &quot; or<br /> &quot;those books&quot; included in the invoice. By &quot;prompt pay-<br /> ment &quot; is meant within a fortnight.<br /> of booksellers—i.e., to the author, the publisher,<br /> the printer, the paper-maker, the bookbinder, and<br /> the Press which receives the advertisements. All<br /> alike must be united in desiring to promote the<br /> welfare of the bookseller, on whom mainly depend<br /> the material interests of literature.<br /> Jn any scheme with the praiseworthy object of<br /> improving the position of the bookseller two<br /> points must be steadily borne in mind:<br /> (1) Freedom of contract; and (2) freedom of<br /> trade.<br /> Thus, it is necessary that the author, the<br /> publisher, and the bookseller must be free to<br /> contract with one another to produce and sell on<br /> whatever terms may be agreed upon.<br /> It is not rijrht, nor can it be tolerated,<br /> that any one of the three contracting parties<br /> shall seek to control the other two and make<br /> them bound in the general administration of their<br /> business.<br /> Thus, the plan recently proposed by the Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association was objected to by the Sub-<br /> Committee on grounds which we need not here<br /> repeat at length. The two principal re 1 sons were<br /> the state of dependence to which the bookseller<br /> would be reduced—i.e., he would be forbidden<br /> the least freedom of dealing with his own while<br /> he would be condemned to bear on his own<br /> shoulders, as he does now, a greater share of risk<br /> than is borne by the publisher; and, secondly,<br /> the impossibility of carrying out the proposed<br /> coercion. It was also pointed out that the pro-<br /> posed relief to the bookseller meant at least an<br /> equal, if not a greater, increase of profit to the<br /> publisher, while nothing whatever was said as to<br /> any corresponding advantage that was to be<br /> offered to the author.<br /> I. The plan before us does not involve any<br /> coercion.<br /> (1) The author nead not adopt it. It is an<br /> individual offer controlled by the ordi-<br /> nary rules of trade. This fact is in its<br /> favour.<br /> (2) The publisher is free to offer his wares,<br /> subject to price and conditions.<br /> (3) The bookseller is free to accept or decline.<br /> II. The next point is that it recognises the<br /> 3&lt;7. discount in the case of books in general<br /> literature published at 6s. and under. It<br /> should thus conciliate those discount book-<br /> sellers -who have so long and so earnestly pro-<br /> tested against any interference with their freedom<br /> of action.<br /> III. In the case of a book published at a<br /> higher price, it is proposed to let it be sold at a<br /> discount of 2d. in the shilling only. Many book-<br /> sellers contend that people who can afford to buy<br /> a book published at 24*. will not mind much<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 32 (#44) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 32 THE AUTHOR.<br /> whether they get a discount of 2d. or yl.; i.e.,<br /> whether they pay 18*. or 20*. for the book.<br /> IV. The proposal to abolish the &quot; odd copy &quot;:<br /> The reasons for this step commend themselves<br /> strongly to us. The present system gives a great<br /> advantage to booksellers who can afford to order<br /> 25 copies, which they get as 24; or 13, which they<br /> get as 12; or in some cases 7 copies, which they<br /> get a.« 6^. But it is only in the case of books in<br /> large demand that the bookseller can afford to<br /> order thirteen copies. In the case of highly<br /> priced books he cannot think of taking them<br /> except by ones and twos. Taking figures that<br /> have been supplied to us, the result is that the<br /> profit which he gets on, say, a 12s. book taken in<br /> single copies is no more than what he gets on a<br /> 6s. book. Again, we are assured that with the<br /> odd copy the profit on a 5s. book is not equal<br /> to that made on two books at 2s. 6d. And the<br /> profit on a &quot;js. 6rf. book without the odd copy is no<br /> more than that on a 5*. book with the odd copy,<br /> and that on a 15*. book without the odd copy is<br /> less than on two books at ys. 6d.<br /> Now, with a uniform price, and without any<br /> odd copy at all, the profit would advance with<br /> the price and the bookseller would have a<br /> greater inducement to push the higher priced<br /> books.<br /> There is another argument against the odd copy.<br /> It is from the author&#039;s point of view. Although<br /> the odd copy is by no means a universal privilege<br /> to the bookseller—because, as we have said, he<br /> cannot afford to order thirteen at a time—some<br /> publishers are endeavouring to introduce in their<br /> royalty agreements the words &quot;thirteen as<br /> twelve &quot;—as if it was a sort of custom of the<br /> trade. This practice deprives the author, without<br /> the least right, of no less than 8 per cent. of<br /> his dues. The author is no party to an arrange-<br /> ment which, as booksellers contend, does more<br /> harm than good; and if the practice is continued<br /> he must refuse agreements when this fine is<br /> inflicted.<br /> With these considerations before us the Com-<br /> mittee are strongly in favour of the abolition of<br /> the &quot;odd copy &quot; altogether.<br /> V. In the opinion of your Committee the<br /> Scheme requires to be strengthened or altered by<br /> the addition of two important clauses.<br /> These are—<br /> (a) A time limit. It is only reasonable that a<br /> bookseller who has bought books under<br /> the conditions set forth above should be<br /> free after a certain time to sell at any<br /> price he pleases. The time limit will<br /> vary with different kinds of books. When<br /> a book appears in the clearance catalogues<br /> of Mudie or Smith, it might be necessary<br /> for a bookseller to reduce his price if h<br /> would sell the book at all. Your Com-<br /> mittee are not prepared to define a time<br /> limit for any classes of books, but they<br /> must call attention to the point as one on<br /> which the success of the method proposed<br /> must eventually depend. &lt;<br /> (6) A method of letting booksellers have books<br /> on &quot; sale or return.&quot;<br /> This was recommended by your Sub-Committee<br /> in their previous report. Kecent events have<br /> only made them stronger in the belief that such<br /> a plan must be brought into general operation.<br /> The number of books now published is so<br /> enormous, that no bookseller, however wealthy,<br /> can afford to buy and to offer for sale all the books<br /> which he would like to have in stock. The high-<br /> priced books he supplies as a rule only when they<br /> are ordered. Thus there are hundreds of books<br /> which are produced but not published. That is<br /> to say they are not offered to the public. Unless<br /> a book is offered to the public it cannot be said<br /> to be published. Or, to put it differently, we may<br /> define publication as &quot;production, exhibition, and<br /> attempt to sell.&quot; The first is done by the printer;<br /> the second and third by the bookseller. If the<br /> bookseller cannot do his share, the book might<br /> as well not be produced at all.<br /> It is said that books on &quot; sale or return&quot; come<br /> home soiled and spoiled. Perhaps so; but not<br /> many. The proportion would be comparatively<br /> small. And, in any case, these books would have<br /> become remainder stock. If a book is a good<br /> book there would be but little risk. If it is a<br /> poor book the risk is not increased, because the<br /> remainder stock would in any case swallow the<br /> whole that was lost. And the great advantage<br /> remains that the local bookseller would be enabled<br /> to make a good show of all the books worth<br /> showing.<br /> It is for the publishers with the booksellers to<br /> devise the details of this system.<br /> But in a general adoption of the &quot;sale or<br /> return&quot; system the bookseller must have the<br /> freedom of choice. That is to say, he must not<br /> be bound to accept any quantity of rubbish that<br /> may be shovelled on to his shelves.<br /> It is the opinion of this Committee that the<br /> introduction of some general system of &quot; sale or<br /> return&quot; and the abolition of the &quot; odd copy,&quot; are<br /> essential to the prosperity of the retail book-<br /> trade, and that if these general reforms are intro-<br /> duced, the terms of sale for each book should<br /> be matter of voluntary contract between publisher<br /> and booksellers, as suggested in the Scheme herein<br /> considered.<br /> By order of the Committee,<br /> G. Herbert Thring, Secretary.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 33 (#45) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 33<br /> II.—1)eaft Form of suggested .Royalty<br /> Agreement between Author and Pub-<br /> lisher, DRAWN UP BY THE COUNCIL OF THE<br /> Publishers&#039; Association and submitted to<br /> and approved by Mr. Joseph Walton,<br /> Q.C., and Mr. Arthur R. Ingpen.<br /> Royalty Agreement.<br /> Memorandum of Agreement made this<br /> day of between<br /> (hereinafter termed the Author) of the one part,<br /> and<br /> (hereinafter termed the Publisher) of the other<br /> part, whereby it is mutually agreed between the<br /> parties hereto for themselves and their respective<br /> executors, administrators, and assigns (or succes-<br /> sors, as the case may be), as follows:—<br /> 1. The Publisher shall at- his own risk and<br /> expense, and with due diligence, produce and<br /> publish the work at present intituled<br /> by<br /> and use his best endeavours to sell the name.<br /> 2. The Author guarantees to the Publisher that<br /> the said work is in no way whatever a violation<br /> of any existing copyright, and that it contains<br /> nothing of a libellous or scandalous character, and<br /> that he will indemnify the Publisher from all<br /> suits, claims and proceedings, damages, and costs<br /> which may be made, taken, or incurred by or<br /> against him on the ground that the work is an<br /> infringement of copyright, or contains anything<br /> libellous or scandalous.<br /> 3. The Publisher shall during thevlegal term<br /> of copyiight have the exclusive right of producing<br /> and publishing the work in the Inglish language<br /> throughout the world. The Publisher shall have<br /> the entire control of the publication and sale<br /> and terms of sale of the book, and the Author<br /> shall not during the continuance of this agree-<br /> ment (without the consent of the Publisher)<br /> publish any abridgment, translation, or dramatised<br /> version of the work. i-<br /> Comments by the Secretary of the Sociirra.<br /> Firstly, then, the parties to the agreement.<br /> &quot;It is agreed for themselves, their respective<br /> administrators, executors, and assigns, or suc-<br /> cessors, as the case may be.&quot;<br /> It is the greatest mistake for an author Ui<br /> contract with the executors, administrators, and<br /> assigns, or successors of a publisher. The con-<br /> tract is between principal and agent, and is a<br /> personal contract, and should be maintained as a<br /> personal contract. Supposing an author were<br /> dealing with one of the best publishing houses in<br /> England, and the partners of that publishing<br /> house, lor some reason or other, desired to retire<br /> from the business; to clear up matters they<br /> might put up the contracts for sale by auction or<br /> otherwise. Under these circumstances an author<br /> might find the right to publish his work pur-<br /> chased by some enterprising tradesman, wh*i<br /> would bring it out in a manner and form which<br /> would be utterly repulsive to the author, and he<br /> would have no means of stopping him; and the<br /> 6ame thing might occur should a firm go bank-<br /> rupt. It is, therefore, a most dangerous thing W<br /> allow the agent who is dealing with the property<br /> to have a right to assign his agency.<br /> In Clause i the publisher undertakes to pro-<br /> duce the work with due diligence. These words,<br /> as far as they go, are satisfactory, but the clause<br /> is not nearly comprehensive enough. The follow-<br /> ing points are suggested for consideration: that<br /> a date ought to be fixed on or before which the<br /> book should be produced; that the form in which<br /> the edition is to appear should also be stated,<br /> and the price at which it is to be sold to the<br /> public.<br /> Clause 2 may, on the whole, be passed, with<br /> the single exception of the words &quot;incurred<br /> by.&quot; It is fair as between the parties that the<br /> publisher should be protected from all suite<br /> against him, but there is no reason why the<br /> author should indemnify him from all expenses<br /> incurred by him, as he might incur unnecessary<br /> expenses without the sanction of the author.<br /> There ought, therefore, to be some words of<br /> limitation by which the author has a voice in any<br /> action taken by the publisher.<br /> Clause 3.—It is difficult to deal with Clause 3<br /> without, in fact, re-drafting the whole of the<br /> agreement, but it should be pointed out that the<br /> rights which the author is expected to transfer by<br /> this agreement include the rights of production in.<br /> Tauchnitz form and in America. Such rights are<br /> generally left in the hands of an agent, and much<br /> better so than in the hands of publishers, for this<br /> reason—that a publisher does not,as a general rule,<br /> undertake the work of the literary agent; that lu*<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 34 (#46) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 34<br /> J HE AUTHOR.<br /> office is not to place literary work in other hands,<br /> but to produce literary work for the author; that<br /> work of this kind left in the hands of publishers is<br /> not likely to receive anything like the same atten-<br /> tion as it is if left in the hands of a literary agent;<br /> that the publisher is the only person who gains<br /> by having control of this work, and that the<br /> author loses by leaving it in his hands. It should<br /> be further pointed out that the publisher does not<br /> anywhere in the agreement undertake to secure<br /> the American copyright for the author, nor even<br /> to do his best to obtain it. It may pay an English<br /> publisher better to sell sheets or stereos to<br /> America, and pay the author a royalty, as per<br /> Clause 4 (d), &quot; of per cent. of the net amount<br /> of the profits remaining after deducting all ex-<br /> penses relating thereto.&quot;<br /> It should be added, although no prices are<br /> stated in this agreement, that for this agency work,<br /> while the literary agent charges 10 per cent.,<br /> the publisher actually asks from 30 to 50 per cent.;<br /> out of a large series of agreements in my hands<br /> from all sorts and conditions of publishers the<br /> lowest charge for this literary agency business<br /> has been 25 per cent., and this only in one case.<br /> The last part of the clause is extraordinary.<br /> It seems astounding that the author should not be<br /> allowed to deal with the translation and dramati-<br /> sation of his own work without the consent of the<br /> publisher. An author must be mad to part with<br /> his dramatic rights, perhaps more important than<br /> all the rest put together. With regard to the<br /> question of abridgment even, it is not fair that<br /> the author should be bound not to abridge the<br /> work unless the publisher is reciprocally bound<br /> not to obtain an abridgment or to run any other<br /> technical work which is likely to conflict with the<br /> author&#039;s. So far, this clause has been considered<br /> from the general point of view, but from the<br /> point of view of the writ-r of technical works,<br /> educational, medical, theological, &amp;c., &amp;c., the<br /> clause is still more disastrous.<br /> Under no circumstances should a writer of<br /> technical books hand over to his publisher so large<br /> a right of publication. It should be limited,<br /> especially as to the number of the edition, giving,<br /> if the author thinks fit, an equitable right to<br /> produce further editions.<br /> A technical writer must keep the command of<br /> his work, must be able, if necessary, to alter,<br /> amend, amplify. He cannot do this with a free<br /> hand if he does not keep undivided control.<br /> The publishers&#039; answer will be: &quot;But this is<br /> provided for by Clauses 5 and 7.&quot;<br /> But it is submitted that it is one thing for the<br /> author to have unfettered judgment, and another<br /> thing to be forced to revise at request of his<br /> publisher or sop his work arbitrarily revised by<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 35 (#47) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 35<br /> 4. The Publisher agrees to pay the Author<br /> the following royalties, that is to say :—<br /> (a) A royalty of on the published<br /> price of all copies (13 being reckoned as<br /> 12 or 25 as 24, as the case may be) of<br /> the British edition sold beyond<br /> copies.<br /> (6) In the event of a cheaper edition being<br /> issued, a royalty of per cent. on the<br /> published price.<br /> (r) In the event of the Publisher disposing<br /> of copies or editions at a reduced rate for<br /> sale in the United States, or elsewhere,<br /> or as remainders, a royalty of<br /> per cent. of the amount realised by such<br /> sale.<br /> (d) In the event of the Publisher realising<br /> profits from the sale, with consent of the<br /> Author, of early sheets, serial or other<br /> rights, or plates for production of the<br /> work in the United States or elsewhere,<br /> or from claims for infringement of copy-<br /> right, a royalty of per cent. of the<br /> net amount of such profits remaining<br /> after deducting all expenses relating<br /> thereto.<br /> No royalties shall be paid on any copies given<br /> away for review or other purposes.<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> another. Whilst considering this question, it<br /> should be mentioned that one of the peculiarities<br /> of publishers&#039; contracts is that in the case of<br /> technical works a clause is nearly always intro-<br /> duced conveying the copyright to the publisher.<br /> An agreement containing such a clause should<br /> never be signed by an author.<br /> Clause 4.—In Section (a) the royalty is to be<br /> paid thirteen copies as twelve or twenty-five as<br /> twenty-four. The alternative appears to be left<br /> wholly to the discretion of the publisher, who<br /> naturally will prefer to pay on thirteen as twelve.<br /> Royalties should never be calculated on this basis.<br /> All the royalty accounts put forward by the<br /> Authors&#039; Society have been (wrongly) reckoned on<br /> the basis that the royalty is paid on every copy<br /> sold, it having been previously taken into account<br /> in the Cost of Production that the publisher had<br /> to sell thirteen for twelve to the booksellers. This<br /> they do not really do, except they sell in quantities,<br /> and a great many booksellers are unable to afford<br /> to buy in quantities; therefore, in taking the<br /> royalty to be paid as in Section (a), the publisher<br /> is not only profiting by the liberal estimates of<br /> the Society with regard to royalties, but is also<br /> endeavouring to take in an extra 8 per cent., and<br /> the extra amount on those copies, of which there<br /> are miny, sold in less numbers than twelve.<br /> This fact should also be made clear, that some<br /> of the older and more reliable firms have never<br /> put forward in their agreements a clause on this<br /> basis, but have always paid on every copy.<br /> The clause is also drafted that the royalty<br /> should be paid on all copies seld beyond a certain<br /> number. This seems to imply that no book can<br /> afford to have a royalty paid on it from the<br /> beginning. Of course this is not the case, but<br /> when such an agreement is placed before an<br /> author as an equitable agreement, these points of<br /> equity should be clearly explained.<br /> If the royalty is to be paid after the sale of a<br /> certain number (generally such a number whose<br /> sale will cover the cost of production), then the<br /> author must take care (1) that a number beyond<br /> the number specified is printed (2) that he gets a<br /> proportionately higher royalty for foregoing it so<br /> long—e.g., he must then get 50 per cent. of the<br /> trade price.<br /> All royalty agreements should further have the<br /> royalty increasing with the sale if they cannot<br /> bear a high royalty from the beginning. A<br /> royalty increasing with the sale is certainly a fair<br /> arrangement as between author and publisher.<br /> Section (b.)—The issue of a cheap edition<br /> appears under this section, as, indeed, under the<br /> drafting of the whole agreement, to lie entirely<br /> with the publisher. This is by no means a<br /> satisfactory arrangement. Here, again, there is<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 36 (#48) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 36<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 5. The Author agrees to revise the first, and,<br /> if necessary, to edit and revise every subsequent<br /> edition of the work, and from time to time to<br /> supply any new matter that may be needful to<br /> keep the work up to date.<br /> 6. The Author agrees that all costs of correc-<br /> tions and alterations in the proof sheets exceeding<br /> no proposed increasing royalty according to the<br /> number of the cheap edition sold.<br /> Section (c).—It is a common thing for the<br /> author to receive a share of the nett amount<br /> realised by the sale of remainders, but royalties<br /> as a general rule are paid on the published price<br /> of the sale of the book in the United States.<br /> An author should not allow such a loose clause<br /> to be in any agreement with the words &quot;copies or<br /> editions sold at a reduced rate should be subject<br /> to — per cent. of the amount realised on such<br /> sale.&quot; Who is to decide what is a reduced rate?<br /> There are many different methods of selling<br /> books to the trade; many of these might be called<br /> books sold at a reduced rate. Under these cir-<br /> cumstances it is unfair to the author to obtain a<br /> share merely of the amount realised. Royalties<br /> must be paid always on the published price,<br /> except in the case of a remainder.<br /> Section (c) therefore should allow a share of<br /> the amount realised on bond fide remainder sales.<br /> The rest should be altered. The case of re-<br /> mainder sales should be distinguished with great<br /> care from the sale of books at reduced prices;<br /> this clause cannot but tend to confuse the two<br /> issues.<br /> Section (d).—If the publisher is successful in<br /> doing the agency work stated in that section, it<br /> is fair that he should have 10 per cent. commis-<br /> sion on the returns, in accordance with the charges<br /> of all ordinary agents. He might also perhaps<br /> be fairly entitled to a 10 per cent. commission if<br /> he was mainly instrumental in recovering money<br /> for infringement of copyright. The balance would<br /> be paid to the author.<br /> The final section of Clause 4 is a little vague.<br /> Of course, no royalty ought to be paid to the<br /> author on copies given away by him or sent for<br /> review, but the words &quot;other purposes&quot; might<br /> cover a good deal more than this, and are insuffi-<br /> ciently precise.<br /> Clause 5.—The wording of the fifth clause is<br /> not very satisfactory. In the case of technical<br /> works, to which a clause like this specially refers,<br /> the publishers should in the first instance be only<br /> given a right to publish a limited number of<br /> copies, and the author might in equity give him<br /> the option of producing further editions, subject<br /> to certain limitations. Under those circumstances<br /> the right to revise would lie within the author&#039;s<br /> hands, as it should do with the creator of any<br /> work, who ought alone to have power to add or<br /> subtract from what he has already put before the<br /> world. This has all been explained when com-<br /> menting on Clause 3, but the principle is of such<br /> importance that it is worth while to repeat it.<br /> Clause 6.—The author is not safeguarded hero.<br /> Could it not be provided that periodically (say<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 37 (#49) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 37<br /> 25 per cent. of the cost of composition shall be<br /> deducted from the royalties payable to him.<br /> 7. In the event of the Author neglecting to<br /> revise an edition after due notice shall have been<br /> given to him, or in the event of the Author being<br /> unable to do so by reason of death or otherwise,<br /> the expense of revising and preparing each such<br /> future edition for press shall be borne by the<br /> Author, and shall be deducted from the royalties<br /> payable to him.<br /> 8. During the continuance of this agreement,<br /> the copyright of the work shall be vested in the<br /> who may be registered as the proprietor<br /> thereof accordingly.<br /> 9. The Publisher shall make up the account<br /> annually to<br /> and deliver the same to the Author within<br /> months thereafter, an 1 pay the balance due to the<br /> Author on<br /> 10. If the Publisher shall at the end of three<br /> years from the date of publication, or at any<br /> time thereafter, give notice to the Author that in<br /> his opinion the demand for the work has ceased,<br /> or if the Publisher shall for sis months after the<br /> work is out of print decline or, after due notice,<br /> neglect to publish a new edition, then and in<br /> either of such cases this agreement shall termi-<br /> nate, and, on the determination of this agreement<br /> in the above or any other manner, the right to<br /> print and publish the work shall revert to the<br /> Author, and the Author, if not then registered,<br /> shall be entitled to be registered as the proprietor<br /> thereof, and to purchase from the Publisher forth-<br /> with the plates or moulds and engravings (if any)<br /> produced specially for the work, at half-cost of<br /> production, and whatever copies the Publisher<br /> may have on hand at cost of production, and if<br /> the Author does not within three months pur-<br /> chase and pay for the said plates or moulds,<br /> engravings, and copies, the Publisher may at any<br /> time thereafter dispose of such plates or moulds,<br /> engravings, and copies, or melt the plates, paying<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> weekly) during the printing the&#039; author be<br /> informed of the cost of corrections? He must in<br /> any case be informed what is the cost of com-<br /> position, and what is the connection between<br /> corrections and shillings.<br /> Clause 7 might, under certain circumstances—<br /> that is if the publisher has purchased the copy-<br /> right—be inserted in an agreement, but in the<br /> present form of royalty agreement it should be<br /> struck out. There is no need for it. Its imprac-<br /> ticability with regard to technical writers during<br /> their lifetime has been explained.<br /> Clause 8.—There is no neud either for the<br /> insertion of Clause 8. The copyright is the<br /> author&#039;s, and must remain so. The clause is<br /> inserted evidently with the idea of the copyright<br /> being vested in the name of the publisher. This<br /> would be a mistake.<br /> Clause 9, the account clause, is so beautifully<br /> vague that it is hardly worth while to comment<br /> upon it, except to point out that it is a mistake<br /> to have accounts made up annually delivered<br /> three months after they are made up, with the<br /> amounts due payable three months after that,,<br /> making it possible for the publisher to retain the<br /> author&#039;s money for nearly eighteen months. This<br /> is a common account clause amongst publishers*<br /> and no doubt they find it exceedingly useful to<br /> have the control of the author&#039;s money for so long<br /> a period. The mere interest on such money would<br /> go a long way to pay the office expenses in a big<br /> office. But the inconvenience to the author, not<br /> to mention the danger of bankruptcy or similar<br /> contingencies to the firm, is very considerable.<br /> Clause 10.—The first part of Clause 10 is<br /> certainly necessary for the protection of the<br /> author, as it would be very awkward supposing<br /> the publisher refused to produce the book when<br /> the author had a certain market for it. If, how-<br /> ever, as in the case of some educational works,,<br /> the publisher desired still to maintain the control<br /> of the market, so as not to allow the author to<br /> republish a book in competition with one which<br /> the publisher had already before the public, it<br /> would be easy to evade the clause by having a<br /> few copies ready on hand. The latter part of the<br /> clause, however, could not possibly be equitable<br /> as between author and publisher. It is quite<br /> possible that the moulds and engravings might<br /> be so worn that they would not be worth half the<br /> cost of production, and the copies of the book that<br /> the publisher had on hand might not be worth<br /> the whole cost of production, as it is quite possible<br /> that they might have been damaged or otherwise<br /> defaced. If, therefore, the author refused to pur-<br /> chase the books at the cost of production on<br /> account of some damage that they had received, it<br /> e 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 38 (#50) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 3S<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> to the Author in lieu of royalties per cent.<br /> of the net proceeds of such sale.<br /> 11. If any difference shall arise between the<br /> Author and the Publisher touching the meaning<br /> of this agreement, or the rights or liabilities of<br /> the parties thereunder, the same shall be referred<br /> to the arbitration of two persons (one to be named<br /> by each party) or their umpire, in accordance<br /> with the provisions of the Arbitration Act,<br /> 1889.<br /> 12. The term &quot;Publisher&quot; throughout this<br /> agreement shall be deemed to include the person<br /> or persons or company for the time being carrying<br /> on the business of the said<br /> under as well its present as any future style, and<br /> the benefit of this agreement shall betrausmissible<br /> accordingly.<br /> As witness the hands of the parties.<br /> would be possible for the author in reproducing<br /> the work with some other publisher to be under-<br /> sold. The author should have the option of<br /> taking over the stock aud plates at a valuation.<br /> The danger, however, is not a very large one, as<br /> if the book was in such a cond tion that the<br /> author dt sired to bring out a new edition and the<br /> publisher did not, it would most probably argue<br /> that the book had very nearly reached the end of<br /> its sale, in which case there would most probably<br /> be only a few copies on hand. The danger, how-<br /> ever, is one that should be guarded against.<br /> Clause 11 ought to be struck out, as, until a<br /> dispute arises, it is impossible to say whether it is<br /> a fit subject for arbitration; besides, arbitration<br /> is more expensive than an action at law.<br /> Clause 12 should on no account stand. It is<br /> most important, as explained when discussing the<br /> parties to this agreement, that the contract should<br /> be a personal contract, and this point should<br /> always bo before authors when signing agree-<br /> ments. They should under no circumstances<br /> allow such a cliuse to pass.<br /> This is a fair comment on the royalty agree-<br /> ment as it stands. Many suggestions might be<br /> made as to the insertion of various clauses, and<br /> the protection of the author on other points.<br /> But, as stated in the opening sentences, these are<br /> faults of omission, and the agreement has only<br /> been dealt with as regards the drafted clauses.<br /> It might be well to mention that some definite<br /> time should be fixed on, before which a publisher<br /> should not be allowed to make remainder sales.<br /> Draft Form of suggested Sharing Profits<br /> Agreement between Author and Pub-<br /> lisher, DRAWN UP BY THE COUNCIL OF THE<br /> Publishers&#039; Association, and submitted<br /> to and approved by Mr. Joseph Walton,<br /> Q.C., and Mr. Arthur R. Ingpen.<br /> Sharing Profits Agreement.<br /> Memorandum of Agreement made the<br /> day of between<br /> (hereinafter termed the Author) of the one part<br /> and<br /> (hereinafter termed the Publisher) of the other<br /> part, whereby it is mutually agreed between the<br /> parties hereto for themselves and their respective<br /> executors, administrators, and assigns (or suc-<br /> cessors, as the case may be), as follows:—<br /> The second agreement is one which has to do<br /> with the division of profits. This system is<br /> always a bad one between author and publisher,<br /> as likely to lead to disputes on accounts, and as<br /> giving scope for a great many minor difficulties.<br /> An author should not, except under very extra-<br /> ordinary circumstances, enter into any agreement<br /> with a publisher for the sharing of profits. Under<br /> no condition ought he to enter into an agreement<br /> such as this, although the Publishers&#039; Associa-<br /> tion has put it forward as equitable between<br /> the parties.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 39 (#51) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 39<br /> 1. The Publisher shall, at his own risk and<br /> expense, and with due diligence, produce and<br /> publish the work at present intituled<br /> by<br /> and use his best endeavours to sell the same.<br /> 2. The Author guarantees to the Publisher that<br /> the said work is in no way whatever a violation<br /> of any existing copyright, and that it contains<br /> nothing of a iibellous or scandalous character,<br /> and that he will indemnify the Publisher from all<br /> suits, claims, proceedings, damages, and costs<br /> which may be made, taken, or incurred by or<br /> against him on the ground that the work is an<br /> infringement of copyright, or contains anything<br /> libellous or scandalous.<br /> 3. The Publisher sLall, during the legal term<br /> of copyright, have the exclusive right of pro-<br /> ducing and publishing the work in the English<br /> language throughout the world. The Publisher<br /> shall have the entire control of the publication and<br /> sale and terms of sale of the book, and the Author<br /> shall not during the continuance of this Agree-<br /> ment (without the consent of the Publisher) pub-<br /> lish any abridgment, translation, or dramatised<br /> version of the work.<br /> 4. The net profits arising from the sale of the<br /> work and remaining after deduction of the<br /> expenses of production and publication, shall be<br /> divided into parts, of which part<br /> shall be paid to the Author and the remaining<br /> part shall belong to and be retained by<br /> the Publisher.<br /> 5. The expenses of production shall betaken to<br /> mean the actual cost of printing, paper, binding,<br /> illustrating, and advertising, and all incidental<br /> expenditure, and, where the Publisher produces<br /> the work wholly or in part on his own premises,<br /> such cost shall be calculated at current fair and<br /> reasonable trade charges.<br /> With regard to the parties to the agreement,<br /> and with regard to Clauses 1,2, and 3, the same<br /> remarks that have been made on the royalty agree-<br /> ment will hold good. The fact that the^ same<br /> clauses are inserted in the &#039;share profit agreement<br /> does not in any way alter the position.<br /> Clause 4.—With regard to Clause 4, which is<br /> the first clause which refers especially to this<br /> agreement, little can be said. How the profits<br /> should be divided is a matter of arrangement<br /> between the parties, and it is only possible there-<br /> fore to draft a general clause.<br /> Clause 5.—With regard to Clause 5, the author<br /> should make it essential that he should know<br /> approximately the cost of production of the book<br /> beforehand, so that it would be impossible for the<br /> publisher to charge what he has not paid. This<br /> is provided against where the publisher produces<br /> the work wholly or in part on his own premises;<br /> but supposing it is not produced wholly or in<br /> part on his own premises, the same danger of an<br /> excessive cost of production would have to be met.<br /> It is a curious point that amongst those pub-<br /> lishers who do produce printed work on their own<br /> premises the cost of production is generally<br /> higher than that of printers in the open market.<br /> When the author has obtained the cost of produc-<br /> tion, and knows, as he ought to know definitely<br /> in the agreement, at what price the book is to<br /> sell, he can, on a rough calculation, reason out<br /> what the profits are likely to accrue. He must<br /> also reckon in an amount to be spent on adver-<br /> tisements.<br /> It is important that he should have some<br /> control over the advertising, that he should have<br /> a veto on the amount spent and on<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 40 (#52) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 6. The expenses of publication—viz., rent, rates,<br /> and taxes of offices, clerks, travellers, warehouse-<br /> men, porters, insurance, and bad debts—shall be<br /> fixed at per cent. on the gross receipts from<br /> the sale of the work.<br /> 7. In ascertaining the net profits of the work,<br /> all discounts and allowances received and allowed<br /> by the Publisher for cash payments or otherwise<br /> shall be brought into account and be credited or<br /> debited to the work.<br /> 8. The Publisher shall account at the customary<br /> trade terms for all copies sold, but, in cases<br /> where copies have been sold for export, or at<br /> rates below the customary trade terms, as remain-<br /> ders or otherwise, such copies shall lie accounted<br /> for at the price realised.<br /> which the advertisements are allowed to appear,<br /> so that he can, if necessary, prevent the publisher<br /> charging for advertisements in his own produc-<br /> tions ox for exchanges with other papers, which<br /> cost him nothing. One publisher in a profit-<br /> sharing agreement inserts a clause allowing half<br /> the cost for advertisements inserted in his own<br /> papers, but this ought not to be allowed, as the<br /> cost of mere print and paper is a mere trifle, and<br /> the publisher is therefore tempted to advertise<br /> largely in his own papers, when such expense will<br /> probably swallow up all the profits of the book<br /> which should go into the author&#039;s pocket.<br /> Clause 6 should be removed. It is right that<br /> all the expenses that can be shown to apply to a<br /> particular book should be charged against that<br /> book, but no other expenses, and it is absurd to<br /> take other expenses at per cent. of the gross<br /> receipts from the sale of the work, especially when<br /> the work has a large sale or is a high-priced book.<br /> Why, again, should the publisher alone among<br /> tradesmen charge for his office expenses? Why<br /> does he not allow the booksellers a percentage for<br /> their office expenses? Why does not the author<br /> receive a percentage for his?<br /> Clause 7 will of course stand.<br /> Clause 8 is a very disastrous clause. Even in<br /> the hands of an honourable publisher it could not<br /> be satisfactory. Books should, as a matter of<br /> fact, be accounted for at the prices sold and not<br /> at some arbitrary price as &quot;the customary trade<br /> terms.&quot; Customary trade terms unfortunately vary<br /> immensely, and as the definition of &quot; customary&quot;<br /> is a thing without variation, it is impossible<br /> to apply the adjective to &quot;trade terms.&quot; If<br /> books are sold in numbers they are sold<br /> thirteen as twelve. If they are not sold in<br /> numbers, they are sold at the full discount price<br /> less 10 per cent., or even sometimes 12^ per<br /> cent. When books are sold thirteen as twelve<br /> they are sometimes sold less 5 per cent., and at<br /> other times less 10 per cent. off the discount price.<br /> Again, they are not always sold on the discount<br /> price. I have examples before me of a 3*. 6d.<br /> book. Some of the sales were made at 2s. 4&lt;f.,<br /> thirteen as twelve, less 10 per cent.; others were<br /> sold at 2s. 6d., thirteen as twelve, less 12^ per<br /> cent. I have another example of a book at 16*.,<br /> which sold at 10s., thirteen as twelve, less 5 per<br /> cent.; and again 10s., thirteen as twelve, less<br /> 10 per cent.<br /> The words &quot;customary trade terms&quot; are not<br /> the only difficulty in the clause. Who is to<br /> decide what are to be called &quot;rates below the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 41 (#53) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 9. The Author agrees to revise the first, and, if<br /> necessary, to edit and revise every subsequent<br /> edition of the work, and from time to time to<br /> supply any new matter that may be needful to<br /> keep the work up to date.<br /> 10. The Author agrees to bear all costs of<br /> corrections and alterations in proof sheets exceed-<br /> ing 25 per cent. of the cost of composition, and<br /> such excess shall be deducted from his share of<br /> the net profits.<br /> 11. In the event of the Author neglecting to<br /> revise an edition after due notice shall have been<br /> given to him, or in the event of the Author being<br /> unable to do so by reason of death or otherwise,<br /> the expense of revising and preparing each such<br /> future edition for press shall be borne by the<br /> Author, and shall be deducted from his share of<br /> the net profits of the work.<br /> 12. Ihiring the continuance of this Agreement,<br /> the copyright of the work shall be vested in the<br /> who may be registered as the proprietor<br /> thereof accordingly.<br /> 13. The Publisher shall make up the account<br /> of profit and loss annually to and deliver<br /> the same to the Author within months<br /> thereafter, and the balance appearing in such<br /> account to be due to the Author shall be settled<br /> on.<br /> 14. If the Publisher shall, at the end of three<br /> years from the date of publication, or at any time<br /> thereafter, give notice to the Author that in his<br /> opinion the demand for the work has ceased, or<br /> if the Publisher shall for six months after the<br /> work is out of print decline or, after due notice,<br /> neglect to publish a new edition, then and in<br /> either of such cases this Agreement shall termi-<br /> nate, and, on the determination of this Agree-<br /> ment in the above or any other manner, the right<br /> to print and publish the work shall revert to the<br /> Author, who shall, if not then registered, be<br /> entitled to be registered as the proprietor thereof,<br /> and to purchase from the Publisher forthwith the<br /> plates or moulds, and engravings (if any) pro-<br /> duced specially for the work, at half-cost of pro-<br /> duction, and whatever copies the Publisher may<br /> have on hand at cost, and if the Author does not<br /> customary trade terms,&quot; seeing that trade terms<br /> vary so enormously? The clause is exceedingly<br /> unsatisfactory, and the only cure is for the pub-<br /> lisher to account for every copy of the book at<br /> the price at which his books must show that it<br /> was actually sold, and that he should not be<br /> allowed to sell it below a fixed price without an<br /> arrangement with the author. With regard,<br /> also, to this clause, the option of the sale at a<br /> reduced price is left entirely in the hands of the<br /> publisher. This should be with the consent of<br /> the author.<br /> Clauses 9 to 16 have all been dealt with in the<br /> article on the royalty agreement. Their situation<br /> in the half-profit agreement does not make it<br /> necessary to add anything to the remarks already<br /> made. The difficulty of allowing them to stand<br /> in the agreement has been fully set forth.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 42 (#54) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 42<br /> THE AUTHOR<br /> within three months purchase and pay for the<br /> aid plates or moulds, engravings and copies, the<br /> Publisher may at any time thereafter dispose of<br /> such plates or moulds, engravings, and copies,<br /> or melt the plates, and the net proceeds of<br /> such sale shall be brought into the Publisher&#039;s<br /> account as part of the proceeds of sale of the<br /> work.<br /> 15. If any difference shall arise between the<br /> Author and the Publisher touching the meaning<br /> of this Agreement, or the rights or liabilities of<br /> the parties thereunder, the same shall be referred<br /> to the arbitration of two persons (one to be<br /> named by each party) or their umpire, in accord-<br /> ance with the provisions of the Arbitration Act<br /> 1889.<br /> 16. The term &quot;Publisher&quot; throughout this<br /> Agreement shall be deemed to include the person<br /> or persons or Company for the time being carry-<br /> ing on the business of the said under as<br /> well its present as any future style, and the<br /> benefit of this Agreement shall be transmissible<br /> accordingly.<br /> As witness the hands of the parties.<br /> Suggested Terms for Producing and Pub-<br /> lishing Books on Commission where the<br /> Production and Publication are placed<br /> in the Publisher&#039;s hands, drawn up and<br /> approved by the Council of the Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association.<br /> Terms for Producing and Publishing Books on<br /> Commission where the Production and Publi-<br /> cation are placed in the Publisher&#039;s Hands.<br /> 1. A fee of shall be paid to the pub-<br /> lisher previous to opening an account for its<br /> production and publication.<br /> 1. The Publisher will supply the Author with<br /> estimates for the printing, and will charge a com-<br /> mission of per cent. on the trade prices<br /> for printing, paper, binding, advertising, and<br /> other disbursements, and reserve to himself the<br /> right to take the usual credit or the equivalent<br /> cash discount for cash payments, but no such<br /> discount shall exceed 75 per cent.<br /> The next agreement that comes under discus-<br /> sion is a commission agreement. It does not<br /> appear from the statement which is endorsed<br /> upon it to have been settled by counsel on behalf<br /> of the Association, although it appears to have<br /> been approved by the Council of the Association.<br /> The agreement is headed &quot;Terms for produc-<br /> ing and publishing books on commission where<br /> the production and publication are placed in the<br /> publisher&#039;s hands.&quot;<br /> It would be impossible to approve the terms of<br /> this agreement on behalf of an author.<br /> In Clause 1 a fee is to be paid to the publisher<br /> previous to opening an account. A great deal, of<br /> course, would depend upon the amount of the fee<br /> asked for. If the fee was a reasonable one the<br /> clause might be passed. A fee of this kind, how-<br /> ever, has generally in publishers&#039; agreements been<br /> subsequently deducted from the commission due<br /> to the publisher, but in this agreement no such<br /> course is put forward.<br /> In Clause 2 the publisher is going to hand in<br /> estimates to the author, and on these estimates<br /> he is to charge a percentage. This course makes<br /> the publisher&#039;s and author&#039;s interests in direct<br /> variance, for the higher the estimates the greater<br /> the publisher&#039;s percentage. From this point of<br /> view the clause is a bad one, quite apart from<br /> the right of the publisher to have a percentage<br /> on the cost of production at all in addition to all<br /> the other profits that he is going to make out of<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 43 (#55) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 43<br /> 3. The Author or Proprietor shall, before the<br /> work is sent to press, pay the publisher a suffi-<br /> cient sum to meet the estimated charges for<br /> production and publication, including such a sum<br /> for advertising as the Author or Proprietor may<br /> deem desirable.<br /> The Publisher will charge a commission of<br /> per cent on the sales.<br /> 5. The Publisher shall account at the customary<br /> trade terms for all copies sold, but in cases where<br /> copies have been sold for export or at rates below<br /> the customary trade terms, as remainders or<br /> otherwise, such copies shall be accounted for at<br /> such lower prices.<br /> 6. The entire management of the production,<br /> publication, and sale of the work shall be in the<br /> hands of the Publisher.<br /> the book. Again, he is to be allowed to take<br /> 7! per cent-, discount for cash payments. This<br /> discount he will be able to obtain at once, as<br /> under Clause 3 the author is to pay the publisher<br /> a sum to cover the estimated cost of production<br /> before the work is sent to press. More than this,<br /> he is to pay for the advertisements at, the same<br /> time, when it is hardly possible that the cash will<br /> be needod for advertising until three or four<br /> months later at the ear lie it. To the end of<br /> Clause 2, therefore, the publisher makes in the<br /> way of profits a fee to begin with, a percentage<br /> on the cost of production, binding, and advertis-<br /> ing, it being to the publisher&#039;s interest to make<br /> these charges as high as possible, and a discount<br /> of i\ per cent. on the same items. This is a<br /> good beginning when the publisher is to have no<br /> risk whatever as regards the book, all expenses<br /> being covered by the author.<br /> In Clause 3 the author has to pay the sum as<br /> stated above before the work is sent to press.<br /> This clause could not be reasonable as between<br /> author and publisher. That the publisher should<br /> have some part of the payment down is quite<br /> fair if he was bound to produce the work by a<br /> certaiu date, but under the terms as put forward<br /> he might put off publication for a very long time,<br /> and, in the meautime, would have the use of the<br /> author&#039;s money. That the author should have<br /> to pay the whole sum is absurd. An equitable<br /> arrangement suggested would be one-third when<br /> the agreement is made, such agreement stating<br /> definitely the date on or before which the book<br /> should be published, the second third on the<br /> final delivery of the proofs, and the final amount<br /> on the publication of the book.<br /> By Clause 4 t he publisher charges a commission<br /> on the sales of the book. This is the general<br /> form by which a publisher obtains his profits on<br /> a commission book, and is the fairest form, the<br /> interests of the publisher and author being com-<br /> mensurate.<br /> The objections to Clause 5, with regard to<br /> customary trade terms, have been put forward in<br /> commenting on Clause 8 of the half-profit agree-<br /> ment. There is no need to repeat them.<br /> Clause 6 should not, on any account, stand in<br /> an agreement of this kind. The book is the<br /> author&#039;s. He pays for it entirely. He is, how-<br /> ever, not to have any voice with regard to the<br /> papers in which the book is to be advertised,<br /> with regard to the price of the book, and other<br /> important matters. All these are to be entirely<br /> in the hands of the publisher, who possibly might<br /> sell the book at such a published price that the<br /> author could not possibly be remunerated on his<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 44 (#56) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 44<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 7. Accounts will be made up annually to<br /> and rendered within months<br /> after the date of making up, and the balance due<br /> paid on<br /> 8. The Publisher does not undertake to send<br /> out copies of the work on sale or return.<br /> 9. The Publisher will not be responsible for<br /> loss or damage by fire or in transit.<br /> 10. The Publisher will deliver the five copies<br /> required by Act of Parliament for the British<br /> Museum and Public Libraries.<br /> 11. The Author shall guarantee to the Pub-<br /> lisher that the said work is in no way whatever<br /> a violation of any existing copyright, and that it<br /> ■contains nothing of a libellous or scandalous<br /> character, and that he will indemnify the Pub-<br /> lisher from all suits, claims, procedings, damages,<br /> and costs which may be made, taken, or in-<br /> curred by or against him on the ground that the<br /> work is an infringement of copyright, or contains<br /> anything libellous or scandalous.<br /> 12. When the Publisher considers that the<br /> demand for the work has ceased, the unsold stock<br /> may be returned to the Author or Proprietor, or<br /> disposed of at the Publisher&#039;s discretion, after<br /> ,due notice of such intention has been given to the<br /> Author or his representatives.<br /> outlay. Further, if the published price was<br /> reasonable, the publisher might sell it at such a<br /> reduced rate that the author could not be remu-<br /> nerated, and the author would have no voice<br /> whatever in stopping such a proceeding.<br /> The objections to Clause 7 have been put<br /> forward with regard to Clause 9 of the royalty<br /> agreement.<br /> It is a pity that Clause 8 should be inserted,<br /> as the booksellers confess that with expensive<br /> books the chance of 6ale is considerably increased<br /> by an arrangement for books being forwarded<br /> &quot;on sale or return,&quot; for the reason that they are<br /> unable to stock expensive books.<br /> Clauses 9 and 10 may stand, with the excep-<br /> tion of wilful neglect in the case of fire, &amp;c.<br /> Clause 11 has been already commented on as<br /> Clause 2 in the royalty agreement.<br /> Clause 12 should not be drawn in the alterna-<br /> tive. Here the stock in hand belongs to the<br /> author, and is put in the hands of the publisher<br /> as his agent. The publisher, however, may either<br /> return the unsold stock to the author or dispose<br /> of it at his discretion, which is by no means fair<br /> to the author. If the author refused to receive<br /> the unsold stock when the demand for the work<br /> had ceased, then the publisher might have the<br /> right of disposing of it at his discretion, but the<br /> publisher should not have the right in the alter-<br /> native as the clause is at present drawn.<br /> Suggested Terms for Publishing Books on<br /> Commission where the Publication only<br /> is placed in the hands of the Publisher,<br /> deawn up and approved by the council<br /> of the Publishers&#039; Association.<br /> Terms for Publishing Books on Commission<br /> where the Publication only is placed in the<br /> hands of the Publisher.<br /> 1. A fee of shall be paid to the Pub-<br /> lisher previous to opening an account for the<br /> publication of the work.<br /> The last agreement that the publishers put<br /> forward is the commission agreement, where the<br /> publication only is placed in the hands of the<br /> publisher. Like the last one, it does not appear<br /> to have been settled by counsel, but is only put<br /> forward as approved by the Council of the Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association.<br /> There is very little further to be said on the<br /> agreement beyond what has already been said on<br /> the prior agreements, especially the last one.<br /> Clauses 1, 2, and 3 have already been dealt<br /> with.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 45 (#57) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 45<br /> 2. The Publisher will charge a commission of<br /> per cent. on the sales.<br /> 3. The Publisher shall account at the customary<br /> trade terms for all copies sold, but in cases where<br /> copies have been sold for export, or at rates below<br /> the customary trade terms, as remainders or<br /> otherwise, such copies shall be accounted for at<br /> such lower prices.<br /> 4. No other name but that of shall<br /> appear on the title-page as publisher of the work,<br /> which is to be sold only through his agency. A<br /> proof of the title-page shall be submitted to and<br /> approved by the Publisher before printing off.<br /> 5. The Publisher will, if desired, act as adver-<br /> tising agent for the Author, charging a commis-<br /> sion of per cent. on the actual amount<br /> expended.<br /> 6. The entire management of the publication<br /> and sale of the work shall be in the hands of the<br /> Publisher.<br /> 7. Accounts will be made up annually to<br /> and rendered within months after the<br /> date of making up, and the balance due paid on<br /> 8. The Publisher does not undertake to send<br /> out books on sale or return.<br /> 9. The Publisher will not be responsible for loss<br /> or damage by fire or in transit.<br /> 10. The Publisher will deliver the five copies<br /> required by Act of Parliament for the British<br /> Museum and Public Libraries.<br /> 11. The Author shall guarantee to the Pub-<br /> lisher that the said work is in no way whatever a<br /> violation of any existing copyright, and that it<br /> contains nothing of a libellous or scandalous<br /> character, and that he will indemnify the Pub-<br /> lisher from all suits, claims, proceedings, damages,<br /> and costs, which may be made, taken, or incurred<br /> by or against him on the ground that the work is<br /> an infringement of copyright, or contains any-<br /> thing libellous or scandalous.<br /> 12. When the Publisher considers that the<br /> demand for the work has ceased, the unsold stock<br /> may be returned to the author or disposed of at<br /> the Publisher&#039;s discretion, after due notice of<br /> such intention has been given to the Author or<br /> his representatives.<br /> Clause 4 is a reasonable clause as far as both<br /> publisher and author are concerned.<br /> Clause 5 is a difficult clause to deal with. It<br /> is certainly necessary that, if an author is publish-<br /> ing on commission, his books should be advertised<br /> in the list of the publisher who is acting for him.<br /> It is certain also that the publishers, owing to the<br /> large advertisements that they can send round to<br /> the papers, get a discount from the papers for<br /> advertisements. All discounts thus obtained by<br /> the publisher acting as an agent would be credited<br /> to the author, and the publisher&#039;s percentage<br /> reckoned against the lower amount.<br /> Clause 6 has been commented on, and the<br /> reasons have been put forward very strongly, why<br /> the whole management of the publication and<br /> sale of the work should not be in the hands of<br /> the publisher.<br /> The account Clause 7 has also been dealt with.<br /> It is only necessary to repeat that it is a bad one.<br /> It has been already demonstrated that Clause 8<br /> is unsatisfactory.<br /> Clauses 9 and 10 are reasonable clauses, and<br /> might well be left, with the exception stated in<br /> the former agreement.<br /> Clause 11 has been commented on in the former<br /> agreement.<br /> Clause 12 has also been commented on in t<br /> last agreement.<br /> It appears that the publishers have not put forward any agreement between an author and<br /> themselves with regard to the purchase outright of the copyright, thinking, I suppose, that when<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 46 (#58) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 46<br /> THE AUTHOR<br /> the book is purchased outright they are sufficiently protected and the author also. This is a view<br /> that I find it impossible to hold. The publisher, for instance, should be protected against an<br /> abridgment. The author should be protected against the non-publication of his work, publication<br /> in an altered form, and publication without his name attached.<br /> The forms of agreement, therefore, as existing between author and publisher are in reality<br /> four:—<br /> 1. —Royalty Agreement.<br /> 2. —Profit Sharing Agreement.<br /> 3. —Agreement for Purchase Outright.<br /> 4. —Commission Agreement.<br /> (a) Where the publisher produces the book.<br /> (6) Where the book is placed in the publisher&#039;s hands already printed.<br /> It is to be hoped that before circularising thase agreements amongst the various publishing<br /> offices, the publishers will seriously consider them again from a fair and moderate point of view.<br /> From some points of view the agreements are much worse than those issuing from some of the better<br /> and more reliable publishing houses; but it must be stated that, from many points of view, they are<br /> better than the agreements which, we regret to say, publishers are now placing before authors<br /> which embody every advantage which it is possible for a publisher to acquire without taking into<br /> consideration at all the author&#039;s rights of dealing with his own property.<br /> G. Herbeet Thring, Secretary.<br /> The comments on the publishers&#039; agreements drawn by the Secretary of the Society have been<br /> carefully considered by the Committee and indorsed by them, and are published in The Author by<br /> order of the Committee. G. H. T.<br /> FURTHER COMMENTS.<br /> SOME time ago, when it was mentioned at a<br /> meeting of the Committee that a Publishers&#039;<br /> Association was in formation, the Chairman<br /> remarked that no more desirable thing could<br /> happen. He meant, I supposed, that the better<br /> kind among publishers would take the lead: that<br /> the practices of the other kinds would be strongly<br /> condemned and discountenanced: and that an<br /> honest endeavour would be made to put the rela-<br /> tions between themselves and the authors on a<br /> footing of principle and reason. It was also hoped<br /> by some that the practices—which some call fraud<br /> — of charging moneys which have not been paid<br /> away, and advertisements which have cost nothing:<br /> and of overstating—which in every case is a de-<br /> liberate LIE—the costs of printing, paper, bind-<br /> ing, &amp;c., would be denounced with the plainness<br /> of speech which the subject and the good name<br /> of the trade demand. Some went so far as to<br /> suppose that, in cases where the publishers did<br /> not agree with the authors, some reason would<br /> be forthcoming; and all supposed, further, that<br /> the original demands of authors, put forward at<br /> the outset, and again and again repeated in these<br /> pages, would be at once recognised by any body<br /> of men who wish to be ranked as men of honour.<br /> They are these:<br /> (1.) We ask for common honesty in dealings.<br /> (2.) We ask for agreements that shall plainly<br /> set forth what the publisher proposes to take for<br /> his own trouble—say, his own trouble and risk, in<br /> the few cases where he incurs risk.<br /> (3.) We ask for books open to inspection.<br /> The last claim is one to which everyone having<br /> a share in any enterprise is entitled by common<br /> law. Perhaps, therefore, it should be withdrawn.<br /> Or, if it stands, it is only to remind both sides<br /> that it is a right.<br /> The Publishers&#039; Association has not yet fulfilled<br /> these expectations. It has now, however, issued<br /> a set of &quot; draft agreements,&quot; some of which have<br /> been approved by Counsel. They have been sent to<br /> Mr. Turing, whose comments upon them precede<br /> these remarks. The documents, in fact, with<br /> these comments, are of the highest importance to<br /> everybody concerned with the material well-being<br /> of literature: they concern the independence of<br /> literature: they concern its dignity and self-<br /> respect. If authors can be brought to consent to<br /> the degrading terms on which publishers in their<br /> collective wisdom, not as individual grabbers,<br /> propose in future to manage their affairs, they<br /> will rapidly sink back to the position as pub-<br /> lishers&#039; hacks which, with a few exceptions, they<br /> formerly occupied. For it will be seen that the<br /> publishers propose to put the clock back and now<br /> lay claim to the whole of literary property—its<br /> entire management and nearly all the emolu-<br /> ments.<br /> A profession to be respected must be indepen-<br /> dent. Literature ought to be, and must be,<br /> independent. In order to attract the best.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 47 (#59) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 47<br /> intellects there mu^t be material prospscts and<br /> prizes: there must be se&#039;f-respect: there must be<br /> independence. Otherwise literature will become<br /> once more, as it was fifty years ago, a profession<br /> of contempt, honoured only in the persons of half<br /> a dozen leaders. And, as it was forty years ago,<br /> those who followed the profession of letters<br /> because the call was too strong to be neglected,<br /> will do so with increased bitterness and resent-<br /> ment in their hearts against the intolerable<br /> tyranny of the people who live by seizing on the<br /> brain work of ihe world and selling it, to their<br /> own sole profit and advantage.<br /> It has been shown over and over again in these<br /> pages, that in the matter of general literature,<br /> and setting aside great works, such as encyclo-<br /> paedias and dictionaries and so forth, the risk<br /> run by the publisher is in most cases either very<br /> small, viz., the difference between the first sub-<br /> scription and the cost of production: or it is<br /> nothing at al&#039;. Thnt is to say, it cannot be too<br /> often repeated, that there are hundreds of writers<br /> in the various branches of literature whose works<br /> carry no risk whatever. In every branch, whether<br /> of science, art, belles lettres, history, educational<br /> books, poetry, fiction, theology, there are authors<br /> —they write nearly all the important books pro-<br /> duced—the proceeds of whose works are quite<br /> certain to exceed the cost of production. Of<br /> those writers whose works do carry risk, by far<br /> the greater number are made to pay for the pro-<br /> duction, and to pay, in most cases, largely in<br /> excess of their cost. In arguing, therefore, about<br /> the share due to the publisher we may consider<br /> the question of risk separately.<br /> What, then, do publishers actually do for the<br /> majority of books? They put them through<br /> a mechanical process. I have done it myself for<br /> something like forty books. My process involved<br /> spending a few minutes with a printer and a few<br /> minutes with a binder: arranging that they<br /> should be paid a certain time after the book was<br /> produced, in &lt;rder to avoid paying any money<br /> except from the proceeds of the book. In most<br /> ,cases there was no money paid except from the<br /> proceeds. Yet some of these were books carrying<br /> risk, as most publishers would plead. And they<br /> cost nothing, because the proceeds covered the<br /> risks.<br /> Observe that I do not say that a publisher<br /> never runs risks. I say that as a matter of fact<br /> his risks are few and of very small amount—<br /> of even trivial amount—as a rule: and that he<br /> need not run risks unless he likes.<br /> But a great house—it will be objected—gives<br /> the author the benefit of his name. Is that a<br /> benefit? How is it, then, that so many successes<br /> are made with the name of new and quite small<br /> firms? The name of a firm on a title-page is<br /> worth exactly nothing to the general public: it<br /> carries no weight with the mass of readers: or, if<br /> any, then there are fifty houses which carry equal<br /> weight.<br /> The public cares nothing who publishes a book:<br /> of all tradesmen the publisher is the least<br /> regarded by the world. There is no single name on<br /> a title page, I repeat, which will commend a book<br /> to the general public more than any other name.<br /> With these considerations let us turn to the<br /> &quot;Draft Agreements,&quot; and apply the test of a few<br /> figures.<br /> I. The Royalty Agreement.<br /> The agreement demands that the royalty should<br /> be paid on thirteen as twelve or on twenty-five as<br /> twenty-four, &quot; as the case may be.&quot; What case F<br /> The publisher&#039;s interest, of course. Now, the<br /> book is not sold at either thirteen as twelve or<br /> twenty-five as twenty-four, except where the<br /> bookseller orders a dozen—a very rare occurrence.<br /> However, this claim means 8 per cent. in the<br /> publishers&#039; pockets.<br /> When a deferred royalty has allowed the cost of<br /> production to be paid for, the author must have<br /> 50 per cent. of the price to the trade, that is to<br /> say, at least the half. That is evidently not<br /> intended by the agreement, or it would have<br /> been so stated.<br /> In case of sales to America, the publisher<br /> proposes to give the author a royalty. In other<br /> words, he claims what he calls publishers&#039; rights<br /> for agents&#039; work. Very well. Now let us see what<br /> the publisher may get on this agreement, and<br /> what he may give to the author.<br /> We assume a book which costs 150 to produce<br /> an edition of 3000 copies, including advertise-<br /> ments. It sells to the trade at an average of<br /> 3*. 6d. a copy. Under existing arrangements,<br /> what may the author make out of his work? The<br /> royalties are estimated at what is called a<br /> moderate figure, which gives more than half<br /> profits to the publisher.<br /> He may get a good price for his English serial<br /> right—say, .£400: a lower price for his American<br /> serial right—say .£200. Royalties on 3000 copies<br /> at 20 per cent., .£180: American royalties at 15<br /> per cent. on 2000, say £90: continental rights,<br /> say .£50: translation rights, say £2 5 (these<br /> rights are generally nominal): dramatic rights if<br /> the book is successfully dramatised, some thou-<br /> sands—an unknown quantity. Without reckon-<br /> ing the last, which no publisher to my knowledge<br /> has ever before ventured to claim, the author,<br /> who you will observe is not put forward as one<br /> of the most successful, stands to make .£925 for<br /> his book, or .£525 in addition to the English<br /> serial rights.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 48 (#60) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 48<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> The publisher, under these conditions, makes<br /> his profit of .£225 on the volume form—quite<br /> enough for the work he has done for it.<br /> What does the publisher propose to make<br /> under the new proposals? He has not, it must<br /> be owned, dared as yet to claim the English serial<br /> right. This omission has, I doubt not, made<br /> many honourable persons very sad. It is, indeed,<br /> truly wonderful that they did forget it. However,<br /> he gives the author a royalty, say, of a shilling a<br /> copy, which leaves himself .£225: he takes the<br /> American serial right and gives the author 10 per<br /> cent. royalty on it, leaving himself .£180: he<br /> takes the American royalties and gives the author<br /> a royalty on them, say of 10 per cent., leaving<br /> himself .£81 : in the same way he keeps .£45 out<br /> of the continental rights and .£22 out of the<br /> translation rights. In all the publisher apparently<br /> proposes to take .£553 for himself, and to give<br /> the author .£i86 instead of the .£525 which he<br /> now takes.<br /> Is it possible that any body of men can be<br /> brought to believe that any other body of men<br /> and women will consent to such wholesale<br /> plunder of their property?<br /> But this is not enough. They further demand<br /> the right of keeping all the money in their own<br /> hands for eighteen months before they pay the<br /> author! Will any other business man in any<br /> other line of business, give us his opinion on this<br /> and the other clauses of this brazen claim upon<br /> the property of others in return for a service of<br /> machinery?<br /> II. Let us nest take a Profit-sharing Agree-<br /> ment.<br /> The author ignorantly supposes that it means<br /> a share of profits. It does nothing of the kind.<br /> It means a share of the poor remnant when the<br /> publisher has laid his hand on everything to<br /> which he can make out a claim with or without<br /> the least regard to reason or principle.<br /> What is it he claims, however?<br /> 1. A percentage on the gross receipts for office<br /> expenses. Where are the author&#039;s office<br /> expenses? Where are the booksellers&#039;?<br /> Now, the gross receipts may mean a large sum.<br /> Mr. Hall Caine&#039;s &quot; Christian&quot; is believed<br /> to have circulated 160,000 copies. The<br /> receipts were probably £2 8,000. Ten<br /> per cent. on this means .£2800. This<br /> seems a very large sum for the office<br /> expenses connected with one book only,<br /> and for a very limited period—say four<br /> months. One envies the immense salaries<br /> of the packers, all, probably, university<br /> men and members of West-end clubs.<br /> And one pictures the huge warehouses<br /> which were built at enormous cost to<br /> contain books of a circulation so enormous.<br /> But the circulation of this book is excep-<br /> tional. Very true. We must, however,<br /> always try a proposition by an extreme<br /> case. Thus, by this way of reckonining,<br /> if a book has no sale at all, it has cost<br /> nothing for office expenses: if it has<br /> a very small sale, say, of a 100 copies,<br /> bringing in .£20, the office expenses<br /> have been only £2. Now, it is a fact<br /> that a great many publishers do not keep<br /> their wares in their own houses, but at<br /> the binders&#039;, and I have never heard that<br /> they have offered to hand over the sums<br /> they claim for office expenses to the<br /> binders who really defray them.<br /> As in every other trade, his &quot;office expenses&quot;<br /> are part of the publisher&#039;s machinery.<br /> He places it at the service of the author:<br /> it is all, in most cases, that he does for<br /> the book: if he is to be paid for office<br /> expenses, so is the author: so, more than<br /> than either, is the bookseller.<br /> Now, if a be the cost of product;on and<br /> b the proceeds the publisher gets for him-<br /> self, he first gets 1 0 per cent. on b, that is<br /> —. Next he has the power of saying that<br /> the books were sold at &quot; customary trade<br /> prices,&quot; that is at anything he pleases—<br /> he may quite safely pocket another 10<br /> per cent on this item. For instance, if<br /> he gets 3*. l0d. as the general price for<br /> the trade, and 3*. 5*?. for special terms, he<br /> may call the &quot;customary trade price,&quot;<br /> 3*. &lt;-,d, and no one can prevent him. This<br /> would give him over 13 percent. He can<br /> overcharge the cost of production by<br /> what he pleases—say 10 per cent. if he is<br /> moderate—and he can make this 10 per<br /> cent. even 30 per cent. by charging adver-<br /> tisements which he has not paid for.<br /> Finally he can keep the money due to<br /> the author for eighteen months. How<br /> do we stand now? The publisher has<br /> taken<br /> ^- + A + —a = 2b + ?,a} from tljg returns of<br /> 10 10 10 10<br /> the book.<br /> There remains b—a— 2^_*_ to be divided.<br /> 10<br /> The author, therefore, would get ——<br /> 20<br /> for his share of the property.<br /> If the book cost £100 and realised .£200, the<br /> author would net .£15 ; the publisher would get<br /> .£85.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 49 (#61) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 49<br /> There is a half-profit system! And we have<br /> not counted the eighteen months&#039; interest!<br /> III. A commission book. Here the victim<br /> thinks he has only to pay a commission on the<br /> sales. He will learn when the bills come in what<br /> the agreement means.<br /> The publisher takes (i) a fee—say, ,£i0: (2)<br /> a commission on the cost of production—why ?—<br /> say 15 per cent.—no amount is proposed. (3) dis-<br /> count up to 7§ per cent.—why? (4) the payment<br /> of the cost in full, and at once, though it will be<br /> three or four months before the book is ready,<br /> and six months before he has to pay the printer,<br /> so that he gets the use of the money for six<br /> months; (5) a commission on sales—say 15 per<br /> cent.; (6) permission to set down the sales at<br /> anything he pleases, since &quot;customary trade<br /> prices &quot; means nothing. This gives him perhaps<br /> another 10 per cent., perhaps more. Lastly, he<br /> keeps the author&#039;s money for eighteen months.<br /> You see this is not exactly taking a commission<br /> and so to be done with it.<br /> If we work it out taking a for the cost of pro-<br /> duction, b for the proceeds, and c for the fee:<br /> We find that the publisher takes, reckoning<br /> the interest at 5 per cent.:<br /> c + —5- a H 2- a + - — a + —i b + —<br /> 100 200 2 100 100 100<br /> i.e.<br /> c + -1 a+ -5- a+ — 0+ JL b+ —<br /> 20 40 40 20 10<br /> or , a + b<br /> c 4<br /> 4<br /> The author will have for his share:<br /> b—a—c—a-±* = 3&amp;—5« _c<br /> 4 4<br /> Without reckoning the interest for the eighteen<br /> months, during which he is kept out of his<br /> money. At 5 per cent. this reduces his share and<br /> leaves him<br /> 37 36—5« _c<br /> 40 4<br /> while it increases the publisher&#039;s, whose gains<br /> now stand at<br /> 496 + 250+1600<br /> 160<br /> a wonderful fraction—one which raises the Pub-<br /> lisher&#039;s Association to the level of a Scientific<br /> Body.<br /> If we omit consideration of this interest, we<br /> shall find that, if a book cost £100 and realised<br /> £200, the fee being ,£i0, the author, on a com-<br /> mission of 15 per cent., which he fondly thought<br /> would give the publisher .£30, actually gives him<br /> .£85 and himself £15. This is a delightful<br /> outcome of commission publishing!<br /> There remains one more method, that of giving<br /> the publisher the books printed and bound. My<br /> advice in such a method, which ought to be a very<br /> good one, is not on any account to give it to any<br /> publisher who proposes to deal with it in the terms<br /> of this agreement. It is to be remarked that there<br /> is only one opening here for anything above the<br /> commission and that it is eagerly pounced upon.<br /> The publisher hopes to become an advertising<br /> agent, and to earn an honest penny in addition.<br /> It is very kind of him, but all that is required of<br /> him is to publish, which includes advertising, and<br /> since he will not even consider that this small<br /> service is paid for by his commission, the author<br /> had better take his work elsewhere.<br /> These figures show what is demanded, together<br /> with what the author at present receives. And<br /> I ask again whether any body of men can think<br /> it possible that any other body of men will<br /> consent to this wholesale seizure of their property,<br /> or will surrender the advantages they have<br /> already obtained? Will publishers refuse to<br /> grant any other terms? For my own part I<br /> should desire nothing better, because we could<br /> then proceed at once to create the new machinery<br /> which these agreements would force upon us.<br /> W. B.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> WE are reminded from time to time of the<br /> opinions still held of an author in official<br /> circles as well as others. He is regarded<br /> as a person who has no property and no interest in<br /> any property. He is considered to be a ragged<br /> wretch who sits in a garret and produces property<br /> for his employer. It is not his property, and if<br /> there is any inquiry into it, he is not to be con-<br /> sulted. A striking example is before us. A<br /> committee of the House of Lords is sitting on<br /> the Law of Copyright. The sole creators of<br /> literary property are the authors. They are not<br /> necessarily the slaves of publishers: some of<br /> them retain their rights over their own property.<br /> They are not an ignorant and illiterate set of men;<br /> some of them are scholars, lawyers, students,<br /> historians. They are not all starvelings: some of<br /> them live in quite decent houses: some of them<br /> are members of the best clubs. What happens,<br /> however? The committee meet. The first<br /> person they call is a publisher: the second<br /> person they call is a publisher: the third person<br /> they call is a publisher. Up to the time of writing<br /> these remarks no author has been called at all.<br /> Perhaps none will ever be called. Could any-<br /> thing show more clearly the contempt for the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 50 (#62) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 5°<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> calling of letters that is still prevalent in certain<br /> quarters? _:_<br /> The present number of The Author is of<br /> very great importance. It contains the report<br /> of the committee appointed to examine into<br /> the scheme of the Booksellers&#039; Association<br /> and the draft agreements which the com-<br /> mittee of the Publishers&#039; Association advance<br /> as representing their views of the situation as<br /> regards the author. With regard to the first<br /> scheme, it is put forward as a compromise. The<br /> booksellers are not called upon to enter into<br /> slavery; the discount system is practically allowed<br /> to remain where it was: the accursed &quot;odd<br /> book&quot; pretence is to be abolished: and there is to<br /> be a time limit, beyond which the price of a book<br /> will remain in the power of the bookseller:<br /> books are to be sent out on sale or return: and<br /> there is to be an extended system of &quot;net&quot; price<br /> to books over 6s. in price. These reforms are so<br /> simple, and so much to the advantage of all con-<br /> cerned, that they will probably be adopted without<br /> delay.<br /> If something is not done, and that quickly,<br /> the bookselling trade in this country will be<br /> practically killed. What will take its place?<br /> The railway stall&#039;r But the railway stall can-<br /> not take the place of the bookseller&#039;s shop.<br /> It cannot contain any but the newest books:<br /> of serious and costly literature it can hardly<br /> show any. Without the shop, bookselling,<br /> properly so called, cannot live. Already the<br /> country booksellers are falling right and left.<br /> The condition of things concerns us all—readers<br /> as well as writers—we are all interested in keep-<br /> ing up the bookseller. Now, by the scheme pro-<br /> posed he will have the power of exhibiting all the<br /> best books: they will be sent to him on &quot;sale or<br /> return.&quot; The author will be certain also of having<br /> his books exhibited. How will it affect the pub-<br /> lisher? At present he subscribes a book.<br /> Perhaps he subscribes 500 out of an edition of<br /> 1500. The rest do not, perhaps, get taken up at all.<br /> The book is subscribed by one or two at a time:<br /> a copy is sold, and the book is then forgotten.<br /> The copies which are left over are remainder<br /> stock: they are sold at a few pence each. By the<br /> new system the publisher would send out, say, 800<br /> on &quot; sale or return.&quot; A book which is exhibited<br /> would have a far better chance than a book which<br /> is not. When it was sold another copy would be<br /> sent; finally, perhaps, a1! would be gone except<br /> 300 or so, which would be returned—whether<br /> soiled or not would matter nothing, as they would<br /> be only remainder stock. There will be no odd<br /> copy, tut the publisher would still sell his took at<br /> the average price: his accounts would be greatly<br /> simplified: and he would be spared the tempta-<br /> tion of lying to the author, and pretending, as<br /> many do now, that all their books are sold at.<br /> &quot;thirteen as twelve.&quot; Anything which removes the<br /> temptation of lying, and at the same time<br /> involves no loss of money, should be, and no<br /> doubt will be, gratefully welcomed.<br /> A notable article on &quot;Literary Life in<br /> London&quot; appeal&#039;s in the last number of the<br /> North American Review. The author is Mr.<br /> W. H. Rideing. To begin with, he knows<br /> something of his subject. Probably very few<br /> English writers could have written a better or<br /> a truer paper about it. There is very little<br /> esprit de corps, he says. He should have said,<br /> &quot;as yet.&quot; Esprit de corps grows from the<br /> outside, not from the inside. When the profes-<br /> sion of let ers can show that its followers are<br /> entirely emancipated from the yoke of the pub-<br /> lishers, and can administer their own estates so<br /> that the world can understand that their&#039;s is not<br /> a dependent&#039;s work, nor a beggarly work: when<br /> the world sees that the national honours are as<br /> freely bestowed upon the men of letters as upon<br /> many other professions: then the modified con-<br /> tempt which still prevails will be changed into<br /> unmodified respect, and the men of letters them-<br /> selves will respect each other and their calling.<br /> It is pleasing to acknowledge that Mr. Rideing<br /> recognises that the improved position of the<br /> English author is due, not only to international<br /> copyright, but also to the &quot;enlightenment which<br /> the Incorporated Society of Authors has afforded<br /> him as to the proper method of dealing with<br /> publishers.&quot; He is not right, however, in sup-<br /> posing that the improved position is confined to<br /> the novelist. Historians—essayists—all—stand<br /> in a better position than they did. The improve-<br /> ment is not only due to the two causes already<br /> mentioned, but also to the great increase in<br /> readers, tho increase in libraries, and the<br /> increased income of the classes which never used<br /> to buy. And this in the face of a decaying book-<br /> trade and a decreasing number of booksellers.<br /> He falls foul of the Literary Agent, whose<br /> business he thinks is simply to relieve the author<br /> of the conduct of his own affairs. This, however,<br /> involves a great deal. The agent prevents the<br /> author from being &quot;bested&quot; by superior know-<br /> ledge used for the purpose of deceiving him: and<br /> next, in the case of those writers who supply<br /> serials, the agent learns where there arc openings,<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 51 (#63) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 1HE AUTHOR.<br /> 5«<br /> and the price which ought to be given for the work.<br /> But according to Mr. Kideing, his chief business is<br /> to create discord batween author and publisher,<br /> &quot;and frequently he succeeds in doing it.&quot; &quot;Create<br /> discord&quot;! Why—when was there concord? When<br /> has there been anything but suspicion and jealousy<br /> and blind resentment ?&quot; More than one strong<br /> house,&quot; he goes on, &quot;rather than submit to his<br /> extortions and his impudence, has ceased to con-<br /> sider the work of the authors who are only acces-<br /> sible through him.&quot; I wonder what houses these<br /> are. I can quite understand a house to which,<br /> for very good reasons, a trustworthy and con-<br /> scientious agent will not take his author, pre-<br /> tending that the refusal comes from their side;<br /> but I have never yet discovered any publishing<br /> house which will refuse an author on terms which<br /> mean money. And, further, I have never learned<br /> that any agent has ever offered an author except<br /> on terms which do mean money.<br /> There is one more charge against the Agent:—<br /> The more manuscript he sells and the higher the price<br /> he obtains the larger are his own commissions. The young<br /> author in his hands who has made a success at the start is<br /> not allowed to choose his own time for further work and to<br /> prepare for it, but is urged and tempted to add book to<br /> book until he beoomes a diffuse and tedious hack, undesired<br /> by anybody, undesired even by the literary agent himself.<br /> An instance occurs to me. The young anthor was &quot; boomed&quot;<br /> so persistently that in order to fulfill his orders he had to<br /> lise at four in the morning, and then, sitting down with a<br /> typewriter before him and a phonograph at his elbow, he<br /> would carry along two stories at onoe. His first book was<br /> an instant success when it appeared a few years ago, but<br /> his last manusoiipt, delivered as &quot;per invoice&quot; in the<br /> words of the agent, his been rejected by thirteen different<br /> periodicals, and is at ill in the market. &quot;As per invoice&quot;<br /> expresses the agent&#039;s view of literature precisely.<br /> Now, really one is grateful to Mr. Eideing for<br /> an article which is in the main accurate in its<br /> details. But this instance—surely, surely, it was<br /> narrated in a publisher&#039;s back office—I know two<br /> back offices, at least, where such pretty stories<br /> are daily confected. In them the literary agent<br /> is regarded with a holy horror born of baffled<br /> intentions. Who is this author? What is his<br /> name? I know all the novelists, I believe, who<br /> can be described as having made a great success<br /> &quot;a few years ago.&quot; Not one of them can be the<br /> hero of the phonograph and the typewriter.<br /> One thing more. &quot;As per invoice&quot; is a com-<br /> mercial expression. But the agent cannot be too<br /> commercial; he is like the publisher—he can-<br /> not lie too commercial.<br /> And, again, about this driving of the novelist.<br /> He need not be driven unless he pleases. It is<br /> his own fault if he his driven. A man who<br /> consents to ruin his powers and to destroy his<br /> reputation for the sake of a little immediate gain<br /> deserves no pity. He need not be driven.<br /> The weak point about the article is that it says<br /> nothing about the larger Literary Life outside<br /> that of the novelist. With a few exceptions the<br /> general standard of prosperity has immensely<br /> improved all along the line. The demand for,<br /> and the prizes for, the dramatist have increased a<br /> hundredfold—literally, a hundredfold. The<br /> historian: the essayist: the popular poet: the<br /> writer on science or on education: all have<br /> advanced in demand enormously during the last<br /> twenty years. The profession of the journalist<br /> has been almost cieated within the last fifty<br /> years: it is now a profession with many solid<br /> and valuable prizes—especially the prize of being<br /> editor to a great daily paper. Two kinds of<br /> books have either suffered loss in demand, or<br /> have not advanced in proportion to the increase<br /> of readers. One is the book of devotions —<br /> fifty years ago there were several books of<br /> Family Prayers which were comfortable pro-<br /> perties—the happy publisher who held one always<br /> used it himself morning and evening in order to<br /> lend reality to his sense of gratefulness. The<br /> other kind which has not advanced is the book of<br /> Critical Essays. On all other forms of literature<br /> a man may live—and live well. But he can no<br /> longer live by writing Family Prayers, and he has<br /> never been able to live by writing Critical Essays.<br /> Most of the readers of The Author are<br /> interested i a the history and preservation of the<br /> English language. If they are not, who should<br /> be? They will therefore make a note that the<br /> English Dialect Dictionary, Parts I.—VI. will be<br /> ready in December next. This most important<br /> is one which ought to be in every library. I<br /> would suggest that my readers should send to<br /> Professor J. Wright, Langdale House, Park Town,<br /> Oxford, for the papers and form of subscription,<br /> and that, if they cannot subscribe themselves,<br /> they will do their best to get the work placed in<br /> the nearest public library.<br /> The Authors&#039; Club has added to its accommo-<br /> dation by two or three more rooms. It wanted<br /> wider space. It also wants more members, and I<br /> venture to recommend the claims of the Club upon<br /> our Society. It is a cheerful and sociable club:<br /> the members are mostly known to each other, and<br /> if not, are accessible and affable: the weekly<br /> dinners are an institution: the future of the Club<br /> is believed in: and it is an excellent thing that<br /> there should be one club, at least, in London<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 52 (#64) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 5a<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> which should really belong to men of letters and<br /> no others. It is also, on the whole, a club of<br /> young men of letters. It is useful for such a<br /> man to belong to it: he will meet others of his<br /> own calling who can tell him all kinds of things<br /> which he would not find out for himself. It leads<br /> young men of letters to stand by each other and<br /> to rely on each other. Add to all this that the<br /> Club is carefully administered, and that everything<br /> is cheap as well as good. It has now been in<br /> existence for three or four years, and on the next<br /> year or two depends its future: whether it is to<br /> become a great fact in literature, or whether the<br /> attempt to combine our young men of the calling<br /> into a club of their own is to be set down as a<br /> failure. Since the Society goes on increasing the<br /> Club ought not to fail. Mr. Thring will be glad<br /> to give anybody further information.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> BOOK TALE.<br /> SIR RICHARD TEMPLE is writing a chatty<br /> book on India, for publication in the<br /> autumn by Messrs. Chatto and Windus.<br /> It will contain illustrations from his own draw-<br /> ings, and will be ca led &quot;A Bird&#039;s-Eye View of<br /> Picturesque India.&quot; Sir Richard began service in<br /> India in 1S48, and continued till 1880, his last<br /> appointment being Governor of Bombay.<br /> Miss Rose Kingsley, the daughter of Charles<br /> Kingsley, is preparing a handbook on French art,<br /> for publication through Messrs. Longmans.<br /> Mr. Richard Kerr has written a short popular<br /> account of Wireless Telegraphy for immediate<br /> issue by Messrs. Seeley.<br /> Professor Samuel Rawson Gardiner is writing a<br /> new monograph on Cromwell, which will be<br /> published, in view of the tercentenary of the<br /> birth of the Protector, in the spring of next year.<br /> It will be published by Messrs. Goupil and Co.<br /> in the same artistic series which already in-<br /> cludes &quot;Mary Stuart,&quot; &quot;Queen Elizabeth,&quot; and<br /> &quot;Charles I.&quot; For this series also Mr. Andrew<br /> Lang is to write &quot; The Young Pretender.&quot;<br /> Lord Ronald Gower is writing on Sir Thomas<br /> Lawrence for a new series of books dealing with<br /> famous British artists and their work, which will<br /> be published by Messrs. Goupil.<br /> Mr. G. W. Perris has written a short bio-<br /> graphical and critical account of Count Tolstoy<br /> and his work. It will be published by Mr.<br /> Unwin under the title, &quot;Leo Tolstov, the Grand<br /> Mujik.&quot;<br /> Mr. Grant Allen is about to add &quot; Venice&quot; to<br /> his list of guide-books. It will be published, like<br /> the others, by Mr. Grant Richards, whose business,<br /> by the way, has been formed into a limited com-<br /> pany.<br /> Miss Dorothy Leighton is dramatising one of<br /> Mr. Allen&#039;s earlier novels.<br /> The Rev. C. Dudley Lampen&#039;s story of adven-<br /> ture, &quot; The Queen of the Extinct Volcano,&quot; will be<br /> published in October by the S.P.C.K. The story<br /> deals with an extraordinary incident in the<br /> colonisation of the Marquesas Islands by the<br /> French, and relates the marvellous adventures of<br /> a medical man and an Oxford undergraduate<br /> amongst the cannibals who inhabit an extinct<br /> crater.<br /> Miss Eleanor Holmes is correcting the proofs<br /> of a new novel entitled &quot;Life&#039;s Fitful Fever,&quot; to<br /> be issued almost immediately by Messrs. Hurst<br /> and Blackett.<br /> Mr. John Warden Page is now correcting the<br /> proofs of a book entitled &quot;In Russia without<br /> Russian.&quot; It is an account of a journey made<br /> by him in Russia alone, and with no knowledge<br /> of the language. He travelled from St. Peters-<br /> burg to Moscow, to Nijoi Novgovod in order to<br /> see the Great Fair, and about 400 versts up the<br /> Volga. The book is illustrated by sketches taken<br /> by the author, and is published by Bowering, of<br /> Plymouth, and by Simpkin, Marshall, and Co.<br /> The price will be 3*. 6d.<br /> Mr. W. H. Dutton is writing a history of the<br /> collection of old-time boots and shoes which was<br /> exhibited some time ago by the Cordwainers&#039;<br /> Company, of which he was warden. Among the<br /> foot-wear were sandals worn by Kean when he<br /> played in &quot;Brutus&quot; in 1818, and Wellington<br /> boots worn by Kemhle some years earlier, both<br /> of which trophies belong to Sir Henry Irving.<br /> The volume will contain thirty plates, and will<br /> be issued by Messrs. Chapman and Hall.<br /> Mr. Reeves, the Agent-General for New<br /> Zealand, who wrote on that colony for the &quot; Story<br /> of the Empire&quot; series, is engaged upon a larger<br /> work of the same character. While it will be in<br /> the form of historical narrative, Mr. Reeves will<br /> bring together the experiences of a long period of<br /> active life in New Zealand. The book will be<br /> published in the autumn by Messrs. Horace<br /> Marshall and Son, under the title, &quot; The Fortu-<br /> nate Isles: The Story of a Colony.&quot;<br /> Professor Foxwell has written an introduction<br /> for the translation of Dr. Anton Menger&#039;s work,<br /> &quot;The Right to the Produce of Labour,&quot; which<br /> Messrs. Macmillan are about to publish in two<br /> volumes.<br /> Professor Lewis Campbell&#039;s Gifford Lectures,<br /> on &quot; Religion in Greek Literature,&quot; delivered at<br /> St. Andrews a few years ago, are to be pub-<br /> lished shortly in a volume by Messrs. Macmillan.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 53 (#65) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 53<br /> Mr. Pitt-Lewis, Q.C, is preparing for publica-<br /> tion a collection of curiosities connected with the<br /> law and legal literature. His book will be called<br /> &quot;The Law&#039;s Museum,&quot; and Mr. John Long will<br /> publish it.<br /> Mr. Charles Williams, the well-known war<br /> correspondent, has edited a book of Soldiers&#039;<br /> Songs for the March, the Camp, and the Barracks,<br /> which will be published immediately by Messrs.<br /> Routledge.<br /> Mr. W. G. Stillman has written the Italy<br /> yolume for the Cambridge Historical Series. He<br /> begins with Waterloo year.<br /> Dr. Brandes is writing a volume on modern<br /> Scandinavian literature for Mr. Heinemann&#039;s<br /> &quot;Literatures of the World&quot; Series.<br /> Canon Stanbridge, of York, has compiled a<br /> Book of Devotions for Messrs. Methuen&#039;s Library<br /> series.<br /> Mr. James Mortimer, who founded the London<br /> Figaro thirty years ago, has returned to the<br /> editorial chair of that journal, after an absence of<br /> fifteen years.<br /> Two volumes of a new and handsome edition—<br /> called the Winchester—of Jane Austen&#039;s works<br /> have been issued by Mr. Grant Richards during<br /> the past month. The printing is by Constable,<br /> of Edinburgh, and the same type is used as the<br /> &quot;Edinburgh&quot; Stevenson is printed with. The<br /> edition will consist of ten volumes.<br /> Novels by Mrs. W. K. Clifford and Mr. Edward<br /> H. Cooper will be issued soon by Messrs. Duck-<br /> worth.<br /> Mr. Fred. Whishaw has written&#039;&quot; A Russian<br /> Vagabond&quot; for Messrs. Pearson&#039;s series of<br /> &quot;Latter-day Stories.&quot;<br /> Mr. Walter Wood has finished a romance of<br /> love and war, called &quot;Through Battle to Pro-<br /> motion,&quot; which will be published by Mr. James<br /> Bowden.<br /> &quot;The Ambassador,&quot; the play by &quot;John Oliver<br /> Hobbes,&quot; which was produced at the St. James&#039;s<br /> Theatre a month ago, is being published in a<br /> volume.<br /> A novel by Mrs. Croker, entitled &quot;Pegey of<br /> the Bartons,&quot; will be published shortly from the<br /> house of Methuen.<br /> Two stories by Mrs. C. N. Williamson, entitled<br /> &quot;Lady Mary of the Dark House&quot; and &quot;The<br /> House by the Lock,&quot; will be published by Mr.<br /> James Bowden.<br /> &quot;John Strange Winter&#039;s&quot; new long novel,<br /> which will be published immediately by Messrs.<br /> White, is called &quot; The Price of a Wife.&quot;<br /> Mr. James M. Graham&#039;s romance &quot; The Son of<br /> the Czar,&quot; formerly interdicted by the Russian<br /> censor, has now been permitted to circulate in<br /> that empire.<br /> Mrs. Sarah Graud will publish in the autumn,<br /> through Messrs. Horace Marshall and Son, a<br /> volume entitled &quot;The Modern Man and Maid.&quot;<br /> Two of the essays which it will contain, namely,<br /> &quot;On the Choice of a Wife &quot; and &quot;On the Choice<br /> of a Husband,&quot; appear in the July numbers of<br /> the Young Man and the Young Woman respec-<br /> tively.<br /> Miss Ella d&#039;Arcy is issuing through Mr. Lane<br /> a new volume of short stories, entitled &quot; Modern<br /> Instances.&quot;<br /> Mr. Hardy is engaged upon a new novel, but<br /> long before it comes out the public will get a<br /> volume of his short stories which have appeared<br /> in various periodicals.<br /> Dr. Richard Garnett, C.B., is about to retire,<br /> on a pension, from his post of Keeper of Printed<br /> Books at the British Museum. Dr. Garnett<br /> entered the British Museum Library as an<br /> assistant in 1851, was appointed Superintendent<br /> of the Reading-room in 1875, and in 1890<br /> succeeded to the position he is now relinquish-<br /> ing.<br /> A Civil List pension of .£200 per annum has<br /> been granted to Mr. William Ernest Henley. Dr.<br /> Beattie Crozier&#039;s pension under the same fund<br /> has been increased from .£50 to .£100 to assist<br /> him in his &quot;History of Intellectual Development.&quot;<br /> Unfortunately, Dr. Crozier&#039;s sight is so seriously<br /> impaired that he has been compelled for the pre-<br /> sent to give up all reading and writing. Mr.<br /> Henley, too, fyas lately undergone an operation,<br /> which has been very successful.<br /> The sale of the Stansfield Library was con-<br /> cluded on June 15 at Messrs. Sotheby, Wilkinson,<br /> and Hodge&#039;s auction rooms, and the total realised<br /> during the three days was .£2313. Among the<br /> lots were an important collection of MSS. of a<br /> genealogical, antiquarian, and historical character<br /> relating to the City of York, compiled by Mr.<br /> E. J. Walker, of Halifax, and known as the<br /> &quot;Walker Collection,&quot; which brought .£105, and<br /> Thoresby&#039;s and Whitaker&#039;s Ducatus Leodiensis,<br /> or the Topography of the Ancient Towne and<br /> Parishe of Leeds, large paper, extra illustrated,<br /> and original water colour drawings, coats of<br /> arms emblazoned, 1816, which sold for .£170.<br /> &quot;The Addenda to the Methods of Publishing&quot;<br /> by G. Herbert Thring (secretary to the Society of<br /> Authors) is now completed and can be obtained<br /> at the Society&#039;s offices (price 2s.). This book, the<br /> tenth publication of the Authors&#039; Society, con-<br /> tains a quantity of additional facts concerning<br /> publishing and publishers&#039; agreements collected<br /> since the production of the &quot; Methods&quot; in 1891,<br /> with comments and advice. It does not in any<br /> way pretend to supplant &quot; The Methods of Pub-<br /> lishing,&quot; but is merely supplementary to them.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 54 (#66) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 54<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Under the title of &quot;Forgotten Truths,&quot; the<br /> Liberty Review Publishing Company is ipsuing,<br /> in a cheap form, a selection from the speeches and<br /> writings of Edmund Burke, with a biographical<br /> sketch by Mr. T. Dundas Pillans.<br /> Derek Vane, author of &quot;The Three Daughters<br /> of Night,&quot; recently published by Messrs. Hutchin-<br /> son, is now writing a series of short dramatic<br /> stories for Table Talk, entitled &quot; The Adventures<br /> of an Adventuress.&quot;<br /> Novels at sixpence. Rolf Boldrewood&#039;s Austra-<br /> lian romance, &quot;Robbery under Arms,&quot; is the first<br /> volume of a series at this price to appear from<br /> Messrs. Macmillan, and will be followed, at<br /> monthly intervals, by Mr. A. E. W. Mason&#039;s<br /> &quot;Morrice Buckler,&quot; Mr. Marion Crawford&#039;s<br /> &quot;Mr. Isaacs,&quot; Mrs. Oliphant&#039;s &quot;Kirsteen,&quot; Miss<br /> Charlotte Yonge&#039;s &quot; Dove in the Eagle&#039;s Nest,&quot;<br /> and Mr. Marion Crawford&#039;s &quot;A Roman Singer.&quot;<br /> The St. James&#039;s Gazette have re-published in<br /> the form of a shilling volume a collection of short<br /> f,tories by Mr. Archie Armstrong, under the title<br /> &quot;Tales of the Temple and Elsewhere.&quot;<br /> QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.<br /> &quot;Quern deua vult pordere domentat piins.&quot;<br /> ITHINK the saying must have been current<br /> in non-Greek reading circles earlier than<br /> your correspondents have traced it, for it is<br /> again and again repeated in Italian as a current<br /> saying by Gior. Villani in the early fourteenth<br /> century. I regret that I have not at the moment<br /> leisure to find one of the many passages in the<br /> &quot;Cronica,&quot; but any of your correspondents who<br /> take sufficient interest in the question to devote<br /> a little time to the investigation will soon find<br /> one of them. P. H. W.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> A<br /> GREAT quantity of correspondence is<br /> unavoidably held over till next month<br /> owing to the pressure on our space.<br /> THE BOOES OP THE MONTH.<br /> [May 24 to June 23.—324 Bookp.]<br /> Abbott, L. The Soul&#039;s Quest. 1/6. Bowden.<br /> Agnus, Orme. Countess Petrovskl. 1/- Ward and L.<br /> Alibutt, T. C. (ed.). A System of Medicine. By many writer*.<br /> Vol. 5. 25/- net. Macmillan.<br /> Andrews, William (ed). Bygone Hertfordshire 7/6. Andrews.<br /> Anonymous (&quot;One Who ties Kept a Diary &quot;j. Collections and<br /> Recollections. 16/- Smith and E.<br /> Anonymous. Memorials of a Young Soldkr, Lieutenant Glffard,<br /> Northamptonshire Regiment. 5/- Clowes.<br /> Anonymous. Some Philosophy of the Hermetics. 3/6. Paul.<br /> Argyll, Luke of. Whit is Science? 6rf. S.P.C.K.<br /> Arundtl, W. B. Ackworth Birds. 4,6. Gurnev and Jackson.<br /> Ashby, M. E. The Silver City and other Allegorl-s. J - Headlcy.<br /> Ashurst, F. Memoirs of a Young Surgeon. 1/6. Digby.<br /> Atlee, H. F. The Seatone of a Life. A novel. 6/- White.<br /> Badeau, A. Conspiracy: A Cuban Romance. 3/6. Warne.<br /> Bailey. L. H. The Pruning Book, 5/- net. Macmillan,<br /> Ball, C. R. The Faith in Out&#039;lne. 1/6. S.P.C.K.<br /> Bangs, J. K. Ghosts I Have Met, and Some Others 2/. Harper.<br /> Barnes, A. S. Eton in the Olden Days. 1/- Robert Browning.<br /> Baiton, F. T. The Horse-Owner&#039;s companion. 2 - Houlston.<br /> Barton, F. T. Our Friend the Horse. Dean.<br /> Baugban. B. E. Verses. 5/- Constable.<br /> Baylies, Sir W. 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Paul.<br /> &quot;THE AUTHOR^<br /> SCALE FOR ADVERTISEMENTS.<br /> Front Page<br /> Other Pages<br /> Half of a Page<br /> Quarter of a Page<br /> Eighth of a Page<br /> Single Column Advertisements<br /> Bills for Insertion<br /> £4 0 0<br /> 3 0 0<br /> 1 10 0<br /> 0 15 0<br /> 0 7 6<br /> per Inch 0 6 0<br /> per 2000 3 0 0<br /> Reductions made for a Series of Six or Ttcelve Insertions.<br /> All letters respecting Advertisements should be addressed either to<br /> tbe Advertisement Manager, The, Author Office, 4, Portugal-street,<br /> W.C.; or to the PubUsher (Hobaob Cox), Windsor House, Breams&#039;<br /> buildings, E.G.	https://historysoa.com/files/original/5/318/1898-07-01-The-Author-9-2.pdf	publications, The Author
319	https://historysoa.com/items/show/319	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 03 (August 1898)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+03+%28August+1898%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 03 (August 1898)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1898-08-01-The-Author-9-3					57–80																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1898-08-01">1898-08-01</a>							3			18980801	Tthe Butbot\<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Tol. IX.—No. 3.] AUGUST 1, 1898. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only. ^<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOR some years it has been the praotioe to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices, &amp;c, for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to carry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this Case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both &quot;idea. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Headers con also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will bo their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements and that all discount* shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author ma -<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> p 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 58 (#70) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> I. |j&gt; VERY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> Xli advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of hie<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advice<br /> sought is snch as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is snch that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudulent nouses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society yon<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that yon may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Society now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21 st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> communicate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order ia<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, .sc.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending ont a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his oonduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039;<br /> requested to note that the oost of binding has advanoed 1<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correct: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of course, we<br /> have not inclnded any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> 111HE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> I Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the oost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6s. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> The Editor is always glad to receive short papers and<br /> communications on all subjects connected with literature<br /> from members and others. Nothing can do more good to<br /> the Society than to make The Author complete, attractive,<br /> and interesting. Will those who are willing to aid in this<br /> work send their names and the special subjects on which<br /> they are willing to write?<br /> FROM THE COMMITTEE.<br /> THE Chairman has resolved to postpone call-<br /> ing a meeting of the Council to consider<br /> the nature of the claims advanced in the<br /> draft agreements issued b_v the Publishers&#039; Asso.<br /> ciation until October after the summer holidays.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 59 (#71) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR. 59<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> The Pttblishers&#039; Draft Agreements.<br /> I.<br /> THE following letter has been received by<br /> the secretary from Sir Frederick Pol-<br /> lock :—<br /> &quot;Dear Mr. Thring,—I was preparing an<br /> answer to your letter asking for opinions on the<br /> draft forms of agreement issued by the Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association, when I saw the comments<br /> thereon in the current number of the Athenseum,<br /> a journal not suspected, I believe, of undue par-<br /> tiality to authors as against publishers. Those<br /> comments appear to me to suffice for the present.<br /> I feel bound to add that no draft at all like<br /> these forms has ever been proposed to me in<br /> practice, either on my own behalf or as acting for<br /> others.<br /> &quot;I hope the Committee of the Society will not<br /> follow the mistake of the Publishers&#039; Association<br /> utting forward other forms of its own, but<br /> rather obtain permission to publish, with the<br /> omission of names, examples of actual agree-<br /> ments which have been approved by the Com-<br /> mittee or the Secretary.<br /> &quot;My own experience is that, with a reasonable<br /> amount of mutual trust, very simple forms are<br /> enough. &quot;Yours sincerely,<br /> &quot;F. Pollock.&quot;<br /> &quot;13, Old-Square, Lincoln&#039;s-inn.<br /> &quot;July 11, 1898.&quot;<br /> II.<br /> To the Editor of The Author.<br /> I have seen the draft contracts. Nothing that<br /> you, or The A uthor, or the whole Society has ever<br /> done to, or said about, the publisher will condemn<br /> him half as thoroughly as his own notions of<br /> fairness set forth for him, by his own lawyer, in<br /> his own way. Can one say more than that?<br /> Rudyard Kipling.<br /> Eottingdean, July 23, 1898.<br /> III.<br /> Every author in England should be deeply<br /> grateful to the Sub-Committee of the Authors&#039;<br /> Society and &quot; W. B.&quot; for their masterly exposure<br /> of the schemes of the Publishers&#039; Association as<br /> set forth in certain draft agreements published at<br /> length in The Author of July 1. I have pub-<br /> lished books by almost every method provided for<br /> by these agreements, and can indorse the criti-<br /> cisms to which these agreements have been sub-<br /> jected. Many men reading these criticisms<br /> would no doubt say, &quot;Ah! These are only fears<br /> of what may happen. Our good champions are<br /> timorous.&quot; But, as a matter of fact, authors by<br /> the score—I may say by the hundred—have<br /> already entered into such agreements, and have<br /> been, not to put too fine a point upon it, fleeced.<br /> A publisher of repute once said very candidly<br /> to an author who was sitting in his office, care-<br /> fully working out a form of agreement, &quot; My dear<br /> Sir, it really doesn&#039;t matter how careful you are.<br /> If I want to swindle you I can.&quot; That being so,<br /> it seems to me that as those firms who are respon-<br /> sible for these draft agreements are evidently<br /> desirous of taking an unfair advantage of authors,<br /> we authors should know their names and care-<br /> fully avoid having any dealings with them. The<br /> time is rapidly coming when authors whose<br /> works have a monetary value will in self-<br /> defence combine together and publish without<br /> the assistance of the gentlemen who charge them<br /> 10 per cent. for office expenses, account only for<br /> twelve books out of every thirteen sold, do not<br /> account at all for &quot;overs (copies printed on the<br /> additional sheets of paper found in every ream),<br /> and who, in &quot;half-profit&quot; agreements, make<br /> secret profits. More than one author of repute,<br /> commencing with the veteran novelist, Miss<br /> Braddon, has already given up the old publish-<br /> ing systems and embarked on the far simpler,<br /> and very much more satisfactory, method of<br /> sending MSS. to the printer, and the quires when<br /> printed to the binder, and placing the books<br /> when ready in the hands of a large distributing<br /> agent. This system leaves no possibility of<br /> fraud, unless the distributing agent took the very<br /> serious step of having a special edition of the<br /> book printed for himself, which is not very<br /> likely; the author knows what number of copies<br /> are printed and bound; he knows what they<br /> cost; he gets the advantage of all discounts, and<br /> he knows exactly what is sold. What method<br /> could be simpler? &quot;What method could be more<br /> profitable to the author?<br /> There is much nonsense talked about the value<br /> of a publisher&#039;s name to a book. The publisher&#039;s<br /> name may aid the young beginner to the sale of<br /> 100 copies, for Messrs. Smith, Brown, Jones, and<br /> Robinson, unfortunate booksellers, who are<br /> perhaps greatly in debt to certain firms, can<br /> hardly refuse to take a copy or two when the<br /> traveller goes round and presses them upon him;<br /> but as regards the author who has made a name<br /> I do not believe the publisher&#039;s imprint is of the<br /> least assistance. If the public like a book, and<br /> want it, they buy it whoever may be the pub-<br /> lisher, and the booksellers are eager to stock<br /> books which they feel sure will sell.<br /> I would strongly advise authors to on no<br /> account enter into a publishing agreement based<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 60 (#72) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 6o<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> on the half-profit system. This was very rightly<br /> termed by an honest publisher of my acquaintance<br /> &quot;a swindle,&quot; and invariably works most unfairly<br /> against the author. If the author is supposed<br /> to pay half the cost and receive half the profits,<br /> he as a rule unwittingly pays more than half the<br /> costs, and the publisher takes more than half the<br /> profits under the various pleas of office expenses,<br /> advertising in his own magazines, and so forth.<br /> Even where the publisher pays all expenses, and<br /> agrees to give the author half profits, he fre-<br /> quently makes the book appear in his account so<br /> costly that no profits are shown even when<br /> several thousand copies have been sold.<br /> To sell a book outright is a satisfactory arrange-<br /> ment, but if the author has a large circle of readers<br /> his most profitable course is unquestionably to pro-<br /> duce the book himself, and distribute it to the<br /> trade through the usual channels. There is<br /> nothing to be said against the royalty system, if<br /> the royalty is sufficient, is paid on every copy sold,<br /> and if the publisher renders true returns of sales,<br /> which, it is to be feared, is not always the case.<br /> But as regards the half-profit system, let us have<br /> none of it; it is a trap, and nothing but a trap.<br /> Experience.<br /> IV.<br /> I have read the Draft Agreements with sheer<br /> amazement. Can it be possible that a body of men,<br /> one or two at least of whom have always been<br /> accepted as honourable and upright men, are<br /> daring enough to endorse what appears to the<br /> world at large as simply a scheme of intended<br /> plunder? The Author has been outspoken<br /> enough—too outspoken at times in my former<br /> opinion. We now understand that nothing that<br /> has ever appeared in these columns has been too<br /> strong for the facts of the case. In the whole<br /> history of trade I know of nothing so hopelessly<br /> bad, so inexcusably and phenomenally grasping.<br /> The author creates a property—big or little. The<br /> publisher claims practically the right to the whole<br /> of it. He reserves the right by these agreements<br /> to take all—all. Whatever the success of the<br /> book the publisher may simply, if he likes (by<br /> clauses which Mr. Thring has so ably taught us<br /> to understand), take over everything. Above all<br /> things, the claim to dramatic rights seems to me<br /> the most impudent. Why, the drama is not the<br /> novel: it is the same story, or part of the same<br /> story, treated in a wholly different manner.<br /> I have tried, but ineffectually, to find some<br /> apparent or imaginary justification for this last<br /> shameless grab. There is none. It is simply an<br /> impudent attempt. The publisher cannot pre-<br /> tend to have done anything with or for the drama.<br /> Why does he not claim the very desk on which the<br /> novel was written?<br /> Let us go on our own way. Let us, above all<br /> things, take care that the knowledge of these<br /> agreements and their unscrupulous greed, and<br /> their determination to enslave literature, be<br /> known far and wide. A Novelist.<br /> V.<br /> In the comments made last month upon the<br /> Publishers&#039; Agreements one or two points were<br /> omitted. Thus it has long been a grievance that<br /> advertisements are charged for when nothing is<br /> paid: advertisements in publishers&#039; own organs<br /> and in exchanges. Some people call this practice<br /> by very ugly names: all people agree in calling it<br /> a trick unworthy of any house which calls itself<br /> honourable. Not a single word is said in the<br /> draft agreements against the practice. It is true<br /> that in one clause (p. 39; it is stated that the<br /> &quot;expenses of production shall be taken to mean<br /> the actual cost of . . . and advertising&quot;<br /> . . . but it is not provided that there shall be<br /> an audit of accounts: nor is it provided that<br /> the &quot; actual cost&quot; does not mean what the pub-<br /> lisher chooses to call the cost of advertising in<br /> his own papers.<br /> The chief reason of this grievance is that the<br /> practice enables a rogue to swamp the book with<br /> advertisements. Thus, if he spends .£20 on<br /> advertising it, he may, if he pleases, charge, in<br /> addition, say, .£3 a month in advertising it in his<br /> own magazines, and five times as much in adver-<br /> tising it in other magazines by exchange. So that<br /> his account might come in after a twelvemonth:<br /> £ s. d.<br /> Advertising 20 0 0<br /> Do. in his own magazine 60 0 0<br /> Do. in other magazines .. 180 0 0<br /> 260 0 0<br /> This item would appear in a lump sum, without<br /> explanations. Of course so great a charge would<br /> be very unusual, but with the glorious experience<br /> before us who shall say what awaits us in the<br /> future?<br /> Another grievance not touched upon is the<br /> &quot;correction&quot; charge. It is commonly set down<br /> in ordinary agreements that the author shall be<br /> allowed so much a sheet. As he has no means<br /> of connecting money with corrections, he accepts,<br /> and very often pays the penalty in a large charge<br /> under this head. The new scheme makes<br /> matters worse. The author has to pay all charges<br /> for corrections exceeding 25 per cent. of the cost<br /> of composition. This is quite a new way of<br /> putting it, and leaves the author more muddled<br /> than ever. He does not know the cost of compo-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 61 (#73) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 61<br /> sit ion: does not know how to connect corrections<br /> with that cost: he does not know what each<br /> correction may cost.<br /> Let us see what this may mean. Take the cost<br /> of composition at £2 10s. per sheet of 32 pp.<br /> That will probably appear in the account as<br /> .£3, because, when charges can be falsified with-<br /> out fear of detection, the baser kind will falsify<br /> them.<br /> The author is allowed 25 per cent., that is<br /> 15s. for corrections on each sheet of 32 pp. There<br /> are, say, ten sheets, or 320 pages. This makes<br /> £7 1 a*. It seems a handsome allowance, and<br /> if the book were typewritten first, it ought to be<br /> a great deal more than the author would want.<br /> But he knows nothing of what corrections mean:<br /> ]ierhaps he goes on altering, and improving, and<br /> running on, till he has run up a large bill, which<br /> in many cases is made a good deal larger still<br /> when the account comes in. W. B.<br /> VI.<br /> Will you allow me to call attention to a very<br /> important point in the Publishers&#039; Agreements,<br /> namely, their silence on the question of advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> There is no trick more common or more in-<br /> defensible than that of charging for advertise-<br /> ments which are not paid for. For my own part<br /> I cannot read the draft agreements without feel-<br /> ing convinced that they have left the question<br /> open with deliberate intent to continue a practice<br /> denounced by the most distinguished lawyers.<br /> I have heard that one firm sweetly assures its<br /> customers that they only charge their authors<br /> half the tariff price for advertisements in their<br /> own organs. They say nothing, however, about<br /> exchanges. Nor do they say anything about the<br /> power which they keep in their own hands of<br /> advertising as largely as they please by displayed<br /> advertisement and whole pages in their own<br /> organs, or about exchanging as much as they<br /> please.<br /> I trust that the members of the Society are<br /> thoroughly alive to the enormity of these de-<br /> mands. Once Bitten,<br /> VII.<br /> I have sometimes thought that The Author<br /> was too hard upon publishers. I think so no<br /> longer.<br /> I am persuaded that you have never allowed a<br /> charge to be brought against them which is not<br /> fully justified by their own agreements, issued by<br /> their own Association, examined by their own<br /> counsel.<br /> What you have denounced in individual pub-<br /> lishers has been now accepted by themselves as<br /> true of publishers in association.<br /> They can no longer cry out upon The Author<br /> for exposing their tricks: they proclaim and<br /> confess their own greed—&quot; We want all.&quot;<br /> Half profits, you show, may mean 85 per cent.;<br /> nay, it may mean anything more they please,<br /> because the percentages are kindly left open.<br /> A Member.<br /> VIII.<br /> [From the Athenseum, July 9.]<br /> The draft forms of agreement put forward by<br /> the Council of the Publishers&#039; Association are not<br /> likely to meet with the approbation of authors;<br /> and it is difficult to suppose that their publica-<br /> tion is other than a mistake. One would almost<br /> think that they were a caricature by an em-<br /> bittered author of the demands of the typical<br /> publisher. The proposed royalty agreement<br /> hands over to the publisher all rights of produc-<br /> tion in the United States and the Continent, and<br /> deprives the author of his dramatic rights. He<br /> must not abridge his book, but the publisher<br /> may; and he is forbidden to revise it or alter it<br /> in any way except at the bidding of the publisher.<br /> The royalty is to be paid on thirteen as twelve, or<br /> twenty-five as twenty-four, at the discretion of<br /> the publisher! No author, we fancy, possessed of<br /> common sense would consent to such a bargain<br /> if he could help it, Then the agreement for<br /> sharing profits contains a clause that is quite<br /> inadmissible:—<br /> &quot;The publisher shall account at the customary<br /> trade terms for all copies sold, but in cases where<br /> copies have been sold for export, or at rates below<br /> the customary trade terms, as remainders or other-<br /> wise, such copies shall be accounted for at the<br /> price realised.&quot;<br /> That is t &lt; say, the publisher is to have the<br /> power of disposing, for any sum he may choose<br /> to name, of the joint property of himself and his<br /> temporary partner. The proposed agreement for<br /> publishing on commission is not so objectionable,<br /> but it, too, is unjust to the author, for it hands<br /> over to the publisher the entire managemeut of<br /> the sale of the book, although the author pays for<br /> it.<br /> No wonder Sir Walter Besant in The Author<br /> is jubilant. If the Association wished to<br /> convince men of letters generally that there is<br /> foundation for the hard things Sir Walter<br /> has said against the trade, it would hav,, been<br /> difficult to choose a more effectual method than<br /> the production of these agreements, which are<br /> supposed to be approved by the confederated<br /> publishers.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 62 (#74) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 62<br /> 7 HE AUTHOR.<br /> IX.<br /> [From the J&#039;tiblishers&#039; Circular, July 23.]<br /> As the result of a good deal of correspondence<br /> which has been going on of late between the<br /> Publishers&#039; Association, the Booksellers&#039; Associa-<br /> tion, the Authors&#039; Society, &amp;c., it was decided at<br /> the last meeting of the council of the Publishers&#039;<br /> Association to invite representatives of the various<br /> bodies interested, including the Scotch associa-<br /> tions, to a conference, in the hope of being able to<br /> take a definite step in the direction of helping the<br /> lxioksellers.<br /> SCOTTISH BOOKSELLERS AND THE<br /> SOCIETY.<br /> THE booksellers of Scotland, following the<br /> example of those of the North of England,<br /> have organised themselves into an associa-<br /> tion. This was done at a meeting of the trade<br /> held in Edinburgh on June 28—Mr. Andrew<br /> Elliot, of that city, presiding. The following<br /> resolution was also adopted unanimously, on the<br /> motion of Mr. John Grant, Edinburgh, seconded<br /> by Mr. D. J. Knox (Smith and Sons), Glasgow :—<br /> That this meeting, having heard the Autboi a&#039; report on<br /> the new scheme submitted by the Booksellers&#039; Association,<br /> « ecords its gratification that the Aatbora&#039; Society ban given<br /> its concent to it, accepts the scheme generally, and com-<br /> mends it to the favourable consideration of the Publishers&#039;<br /> Association.<br /> THE CASE OF THE BOOKSELLERS.<br /> ri^HE serious condition of the bookselling<br /> I trade and the threatening extinction, by<br /> processes extremely painful, of the country<br /> bookseller must be again brought before the atten-<br /> tion of the readers of this journal. For it is the<br /> interest—the duty—of every man or woman of<br /> letters to keep the bookseller, if possible, in a<br /> flourishing and contented condition. Therefore,<br /> even at the risk of repetition, it is proposed to<br /> return to the subject in these columns. What is<br /> the present condition? Agricultural depression,<br /> which affects not only the country but all those<br /> towns which are outside the manufacturing dis-<br /> tricts, has been marked by a corresponding depres-<br /> sion in bookselling. Newsagents have started up<br /> everywhere selling cheap books as well as news-<br /> papers: drapers have made cheap books an<br /> attraction of their shops: the stores keep large<br /> supplies of books. The bookseller, who was<br /> formerly able to order every new book of import-<br /> ance, has ceased to supply himself with any but<br /> those books which he is tolerably certain to sell.<br /> He now offers &quot;fancy&quot; things, photographs,<br /> stationery, pens and pencils. If a solid book of<br /> high price is wanted he will get it, but he will<br /> order it at his risk and peril: he will not keep it.<br /> The author thinks, perhaps, that this deterioration<br /> of the bookseller matters nothing to him. It<br /> matters everything to him. There are three or four<br /> persons directly concerned with the production of<br /> a book: the author; the printer; the binder;<br /> the paper maker; and the bookseller. The pub-<br /> lisher, who is in most cases only the distributor,<br /> should have a much smaller interest than these<br /> four, who are all directly interested in the book.<br /> If the bookseller does not exhibit and offer the<br /> book to the public, how is it to get into circula-<br /> tion at all? But he cannot afford to order it.<br /> Therefore the author has no public. It is now<br /> actually true that out of the thousands of new<br /> books issued every year a great number never<br /> get upon the bookseller&#039;s shelves at all. That is<br /> to say, they are not published.<br /> Another danger now threatens the bookseller.<br /> At his best he formerly catered for an extremely<br /> limited class—the class with education, culture,<br /> and means, who treated a book as if they loved it.<br /> liked to see it well printed and handsomely bound,<br /> and were content to pay a large price for it. This<br /> feeling of exclusiveness and respectability gave<br /> the bookseller a sense of dignity and self-respect.<br /> The feeling lingers still, but it is now becoming<br /> harmful. The bookseller does not recognise cheap<br /> literature; he will have nothing to do with litera-<br /> ture for the people. Yet, unless the signs of the<br /> times are singularly deceptive, cheap literature will<br /> be upon us before long—in fact, I believe, before<br /> many months—and in an overwhelming flood.<br /> Certain popular books have been put out as an<br /> experiment by two or three publishers at very low<br /> prices. Some of these at 6d. have achieved an<br /> astonishing success, running, it is said, to<br /> 200,000 copies and more. The next step will be<br /> the issue of new books—not old books—at this<br /> low price. For my own part I think that cheap<br /> literature is loudly called for. The people have<br /> been reading scrappy penny journals long enough.<br /> They should be ready to take a step higher, and<br /> to buy and read good literature at 6d. The new<br /> books thus issued will of necessity, at first, be<br /> novels: the old books will be those which are<br /> already acknowledged to belong to the literature<br /> of the country; and as for those who now<br /> advocate the reduction of prices from 6s. to half-<br /> a-crown, they may shift their ground, and con-<br /> sider the reduction from 6*. to 6d.<br /> From the bookseller&#039;s point of view, the cheap<br /> literature will be at first disconcerting. Let him<br /> boldly throw himself into the movement when it<br /> begins. Let him, by means of circulars and in<br /> every possible way, make himself the bookseller<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 63 (#75) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> of the whole people, not the few. He will<br /> continue to be always the bookseller of the few,<br /> because high-priced books must still be issued,<br /> and cheapness can only be introduced where<br /> popularity is possible.<br /> For the author there is the comfortable reflec-<br /> tion that, even if his book is reduced from 6*. to<br /> 6d., and his royalty from is. 3d. to a penny,<br /> 15,000 copies at the latter price will bring him in<br /> as much as a thousand at the former; and that<br /> 200,000 at the latter means 13,300 at the former<br /> —and unless he is in the front rank of popularity,<br /> he will not probably exceed this figure. Now, with<br /> an improved system of distribution, the cheap<br /> literature will make a bid for millions, not for<br /> thousands. It will also be possible to bring out<br /> a book at 6*. and after two years or so to produce<br /> a cheap sixpenny edition.<br /> What have the publishers proposed in the<br /> teeth of these changes? With all the signs before<br /> them of a demand for cheap literature and a supply<br /> of it, they propose to make the public pay more<br /> instead of less, and, on pretence of giving the<br /> booksellers relief, to put more into their own<br /> pockets. In the teeth of the competition going<br /> on they proposed to bind the unfortunate book-<br /> sellers by an iron and degrading slavery. They<br /> were to have no books at all, or books only at a<br /> prohibitory price, unless they obeyed the orders<br /> of the publisher, who forbade them to sell their<br /> own property at any price they pleased. In the<br /> teeth of the increasing poverty of the trade, they<br /> propose to maintain the system of forcing all<br /> the risks upon the booksellers. With the result<br /> that every year fewer books get the chance of<br /> being offered to the public.<br /> We have now, in conjunction with the Book-<br /> sellers&#039; Association, adopted an alternative scheme<br /> which involves neither coercion nor slavery, but<br /> leaves contract free. It was given in the last<br /> number of The Author at length. It means<br /> simply as follows:<br /> 1. Books at 6s, and under to remain as at<br /> present.<br /> 2. If a publisher wishes to bring out a book<br /> at net price, and to make any special<br /> conditions with a bookseller, it is a<br /> question of contract for the book only.<br /> There is to be no tyrannical attempt at<br /> boycotting or &quot;punishing&quot; a bookseller<br /> who refuses.<br /> 3. Books are to be sent &quot;on sale or return.&quot;<br /> 4. The &quot; odd copy&quot; is to be abolished, and one<br /> price is to be charged. This clause is<br /> as much in the interest of the author as<br /> the bookseller, because the publisher will<br /> now be relieved of the temptation to<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> pretend that all his arrangements are<br /> 13 as 12.<br /> These rules will, it is hoped, if they are accepted<br /> by the publishers or any of them, relieve the<br /> trade very materially. If they are not accepted,<br /> the Society must endeavour to devise some other<br /> way. Meantime the members are earnestly<br /> invited to consider the urgency of the case and<br /> the fact that the publishers are proposing to<br /> make things worse instead of better, and to<br /> suggest any expedient that may occur to them<br /> whereby the bookseller, and especially the country<br /> bookseller, may be assisted to make a livelihood<br /> by a trade which is indispensable to everybody<br /> connected with the production of literature.<br /> POPULAR TASTE IN BOOKS.<br /> WHAT is &quot;the popular taste&quot;? What is<br /> it going to be if, as is whispered, &quot;new<br /> and original&quot; work is brought to market<br /> at a popular price—a shilling or even sixpence<br /> per volume?<br /> This question is so much in the air just now,<br /> that I venture to take up a little space in The<br /> AutJwr with reminiscences of a personal ex-*<br /> perience which may throw some light on the<br /> subject.<br /> In 1886 a library for working men and women<br /> was established which, from its constitution and<br /> management, became as severe a test of the<br /> reception which writers who would cater for &quot;the<br /> proletariate &quot; must expect as anything could well<br /> be.<br /> This library lived and flourished for eight<br /> years, and then died simply because a large rate-<br /> supported free library took its place. It was<br /> situated in Hoxton, and its members were all<br /> residents in the neighbourhood or came from<br /> still poorer parts of East London. It was con-<br /> trolled by a committee of working men, elected<br /> annually by its subscribers, and was unconnected<br /> with any political party, Church, or social &quot;move-<br /> ment.&quot;<br /> Those who joined it, and paid their sub-<br /> scriptions to its treasurer, did so, firstly, because<br /> they wanted to read; secondly, because they<br /> found that, if they desired to read a particular<br /> book, that work, if not already in the library,<br /> could be procured for them at short notice. This<br /> is the point upon which I wish to lay most stress.<br /> Out of the eight hundred volumes which the<br /> library gradually acquired, all but a very small<br /> number were chosen by the members without sug-<br /> gestion or hint from anyone as to what they ought<br /> to read.<br /> a<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 64 (#76) ##############################################<br /> <br /> *4<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Of course the library had generous friends, to<br /> whose kindness, and faith in working men, its<br /> success was largely due.<br /> Through these gentlemen, as the number of the<br /> members increased, consignments of all works<br /> named by any member of the library came into<br /> its possession. Lists were handed to the bbrarian<br /> from time to time, were examined by the com-<br /> mittee, and passed on to the donors. Now and<br /> then some book was mentioned that could only be<br /> of very slight interest, and this was expunged<br /> from the list; but, during the whole eight years<br /> of the library&#039;s existence, there were not a score<br /> of these. Thus, month by month and year by<br /> year, was collected a library of a class which<br /> its members, if they could have afforded it,<br /> would have had in their own homes. I hold a<br /> catalogue of these works. All of them have been<br /> read, and well read. Many had to be renewed a<br /> number of times, so eagerly were they sought for.<br /> I will write down these favoured volumes in the<br /> order of their popularity: &quot;Adam Bede,&quot; &quot; West-<br /> ward Ho!&quot; &quot;The Golden Butterfly,&quot; &quot;Lorna<br /> Doone,&quot; Green&#039;s &quot;History of England,&quot; &quot; David<br /> Copperfield,&quot; &quot;Ready Money Mortiboy,&quot; &quot;Jane<br /> Eyre,&quot; &quot;Wives and Daughters.&quot;<br /> In fiction, the favourite authors were: Dickens,<br /> Scott, Besant, Dumas, Miss Braddon, Wilkie<br /> Collins, Mrs. Henry Wood, Bulwer Lytton,<br /> Ouida, Mrs. Gaskell, Charlotte Bronte, Edna<br /> LyalL<br /> In history, Green and Macaulay naturally came<br /> first; but Stubbs&#039;s &quot; Constitutional History &quot; was<br /> chosen by a cabinet-maker, and read by many<br /> others. Carlyle was represented by the &quot; Crom-<br /> well Letters&quot; and &quot;The French Revolution.&quot;<br /> In science, interest centred round Darwin.<br /> &quot;The Origin of Species &quot; and &quot; Descent of Man&quot;<br /> were chosen early in the day, and much read.<br /> The political economists studied Mill and Jevons,<br /> and Spencer and Ruskin were frequently out.<br /> There were biographies by Ainger, Morley, Leslie<br /> Stephen, Disraeli, and Saintsbury. Travels by<br /> Livingstone, Ballantyne, Sir Samuel Baker, Miss<br /> Bird, and Stanley. Prescott&#039;s &quot;Conquests of<br /> Mexico and Peru were very popular. Motley&#039;s<br /> &quot;Dutch Republic,&quot; Lord Beaconsfield&#039;s &quot; Letters,&quot;<br /> &quot;Progress and Poverty,&quot; all were there, with more<br /> &quot;standard works&quot; than I have space to name.<br /> And what of the members? There was a rule<br /> that no one might belong whose income exceeded<br /> two pounds a week. Few of the people<br /> reached such luxury. The elder men, our com-<br /> mitteemen and their friends, were mostly com-<br /> positors, cabinet-makers, painters, packers, ware-<br /> housemen, and porters. The younger ones,<br /> apprentices to cabinet work, upholstery, or piano-<br /> makers, printers&#039; layers-on, and labourers of all<br /> kinds. There were afew shop assistants—but not<br /> many of these. The women were mostly work-<br /> girls, of the average Hoxton type, who, to the<br /> number of seventy, greeted the author of &quot;The<br /> Children &quot;of Gibeon&quot;—one concert night—with a<br /> shrill &quot;Melenda&quot; cheer! Tie-makers, feather-<br /> curlers, box-makers, dressmakers, tailoresses—<br /> pale anaemic lasses, earning, on an average, i0s.<br /> to 12*. per week. One of them, representative of<br /> many, told me when she first came that Miss<br /> Braddon was the only author she had ever heard<br /> of. I gave her Miss Braddon until she tired of<br /> that food—and then, as an experiment, presented<br /> &quot;Adam Bede.&quot; The result was astonishing. She<br /> was back in less than a week, all smiles. &quot;I say,<br /> let&#039;s &#039;ave another of his books. I ain&#039;t ever read<br /> as good a tale before!&quot; In the end, she said that<br /> &quot;The Mill on the Floss&quot; was her favourite<br /> Another girl told me that, until she joined the<br /> &quot;Lib&#039;ery,&quot; she always bought a penny novelette<br /> every week. She had never done so since.<br /> It may be said that the library was, after all,<br /> a very small affair. Undoubtedly. But I bold<br /> that in view of its quiet natural growth; the<br /> absence of artificial stimulus; and, above all, the<br /> entire freedom of its members to fill its shelves<br /> with almost any kind of literature they chose—<br /> the record I have given has a very important<br /> bearing on the future of the distribution of litera-<br /> ture in a cheap form. Depend upon it, the<br /> writers of the Penny Dreadful and the Shilling<br /> Shocker hold their own simply from the cheap-<br /> ness of their wares. Place good works within<br /> the reach of men and women who rarely have<br /> more than sixpence or a shilling to spare for<br /> a luxury, and the circulation of the works<br /> of those who write good English: who can<br /> depict real life: draw real characters: and<br /> who have thoughts and ideas worthy of<br /> expression—will utterly swamp and crowd out<br /> the noisome trash which flaunts in the little<br /> East-end book-shop windows to-day. Their<br /> circulation will rise from thousands to hundreds<br /> of thousands: from hundreds of thousands to<br /> millions. Brother authors—take courage! the<br /> &quot;popular taste&quot; is sound to the core.<br /> Arthur Paterson.<br /> THE PENSION LIST.<br /> <br /> IHE Pension List for the year has been<br /> published. It is as follows:<br /> I. LITERATURE.<br /> Rev. Canon Atkinson (Philologist), .£100.<br /> William Chatterton Coupland (Works on<br /> Philosophy), .£50.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 65 (#77) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 65<br /> Dr. Beattie Crozier (Philosophical Re-<br /> searches), .£50.<br /> Rev. Canon Daniel Evans (Writings on<br /> Welsh Literature), .£100.<br /> Rev. J. Cunningham Geikie, D.D., .£50.<br /> (Dr. Geikie is well known as a writer on<br /> theological subjects. Among his books<br /> are &quot;The Life and Words of Christ,&quot;<br /> and &quot;Hours with the Bible.&quot;)<br /> William Ernest Henley (late editor of the<br /> National Observer and the New Review,<br /> joint-editor of The Centenary Burns;<br /> author of Poems, &amp;c.), .£225.<br /> II. Literature by Connection.<br /> Mi&lt;,s Janet Mary Oliphant (niece of Mrs.<br /> Oliphant), .£75.<br /> Mrs. Palmer (widow of the late Professor<br /> Arthur Palmer, classical scholar),<br /> .£100.<br /> Two daughters of the late Dr. Leonhard<br /> Schmitz, classical scholar, each .£25.<br /> The daughter of the late Richard Shilleto,<br /> classical scholar, .£50.<br /> III. Music.<br /> Mr. Joseph Robinson, for services to music<br /> in Ireland, .£50.<br /> IV. Art by Connection.<br /> Two daughters of the late Mr. George<br /> Waller, in consideration of his services<br /> to artistic education, each .£25.<br /> V. Science and Art.<br /> Dr. John James Wild, late artist and<br /> secretarv to the Challenger Expedition,<br /> .£50.<br /> VI. No connection with either Literature,<br /> Science, or Art, and therefore no right<br /> to appear in this list.<br /> The widow of one Colonial Governor and<br /> the four daughters of another.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> THE Academy, I rejoice to see, quotes Mr.<br /> Turing&#039;s opinions on the publishers&#039; draft<br /> agreements. It expresses, further, its regret<br /> at two statements made by myself. The first is to<br /> the effect that the British Public does not care<br /> two straws about the publisher. Well, I am sorry<br /> to advance an opinion or to make any assertion<br /> which is not as plain as an axiom. At the<br /> same time it is most true and certain that<br /> the public cares not one brass farthing for any<br /> publisher: that is to say, it looks at the book<br /> and the author, and carer, no more who is the<br /> publisher than it cares to find out who is the<br /> papermaker. The bookseller cares because he<br /> has to make terms with the publisher. The<br /> public cares nothing. In no other trade is there<br /> such an absolute indifference to the name. So<br /> that I cannot withdraw this statement.<br /> The other statement is concerned with the<br /> question of risk. I first, before making this<br /> statement, carefully separated encyclopaedias,<br /> great dictionaries, and works of a colossal kind.<br /> This separation was cut off the passage quoted<br /> by the Academy, so that I was made to talk<br /> nonsense. I thought the Bogey of Risk was<br /> laid. Let us try again. In general literature<br /> — namely, essays, history, biography, belles<br /> lettres, poetry, novels—there are hundreds of<br /> writers whose works carry no risk whatever, that<br /> is to say, they are certain to circulate enough<br /> to pay the cost of production with a margin of<br /> profit. That is the first fact. J£ a publisher<br /> takes an author who is not among this company<br /> he incurs risk—but he does this voluntarily.<br /> And very few publishers do. That is the second<br /> fact. Next, what is the risk, where any is<br /> incurred? The world, which fancies itself very<br /> clever, replies triumphantly, &quot;Why, the cost of<br /> production, of course. Am I a fool?&quot; Not a fool,<br /> but ignorant. The risk is the difference between<br /> the cost of production and the first subscription.<br /> Some houses send round a traveller to subscribe<br /> the book before it is printed. This gives them<br /> some idea of its chances. Thus, a book is sub-<br /> scribed—say—250 in town. That means a<br /> beginning, perhaps, with the country trade as<br /> well, of 500—never mind the figures, any other<br /> will do just as well to illustrate the method.<br /> Taking our old friend, the 6*. book which has<br /> cost, say, .£80—we have, say, a first subscription<br /> of .£87, which is more than the book costs to<br /> produce. If there is a subscription of 400 copies,<br /> the risk is the difference between .£80, the cost,<br /> and .£70, the subscription, or .£10. That is an<br /> immense risk, is it not?<br /> The Harmsworth Magazine may be taken as an<br /> indication of the increased (the widely-increased)<br /> demand for literature of a kind. While our<br /> shilling and half-crown magazines are crawling<br /> along with a circulation for the most part of a<br /> few thousands, this threepenny rival, splendidly<br /> illustrated and quite as well written as many of<br /> the dearer ones, steps straight into a circulation<br /> reckoned by hundreds of thousands. This is a<br /> great fact which should lead people who are not<br /> publishers, and are only interested in the advance<br /> of culture, to reflect a little. Those gentlemen,<br /> especially, who, from the commanding pinnacle of<br /> the club smoking-room, look round upon man-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 66 (#78) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 66<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> kind and report that what they read is &quot;truck&quot;<br /> or &quot;slush,&quot; should look at the success of this<br /> magazine and others nearly as cheap. The next<br /> great fact which concerns us from another point<br /> of view is the cheapness of production. Make<br /> every allowance that can be made for improved<br /> machinery: for working a lot of magazines and<br /> papers together: for cheapness of paper: for a<br /> great mass of advertisements: and yet the<br /> mystery remains how the paper can be produced<br /> at so small a cost. The third great fact is more<br /> important still. It is that cheap and good maga-<br /> zines will be followed by cheap and good litera-<br /> ture. We talk about books at 6s., and i0*. 6d.,<br /> and so forth. We are, it seems to me, on the<br /> verge of the greatest revolution that the history<br /> of Literature has ever seen. Ever since I began<br /> to investigate and to understand the machinery<br /> and the spread of literature, I have become more<br /> and more convinced that the present system of<br /> providing dear books in small numbers, though<br /> it must continue with certain books, will be a<br /> small and an insignificant thing compared with<br /> the literature offered to the world at prices<br /> which seem impossible. Already popular books<br /> are brought out at sixpence and sold by the<br /> hundred thousand. They are all old books of<br /> which the copyrights belong to publishers. Why<br /> should they not be new books? (see p. 62). They<br /> must be offered for sale by newsvendors, at the<br /> stores, as well as the booksellers: the difficulty is<br /> that of distribution and advertisement. This<br /> difficulty will be got over by the three new firms who<br /> have taken possession of the outside mass; when<br /> it is got over by them other publishers will follow.<br /> From the author&#039;s point of view it should be<br /> far better to appeal to the general public than to<br /> the limited public. It is objected that he would<br /> have to &quot; write down &quot; to them. Not at all. The<br /> cheap books already offered to them, and eagerly<br /> taken up, at low prices, are not books &quot; written<br /> down&quot; to anybody. Let us see how a cheap<br /> book would affect the author. Take a popular<br /> author whose last book had a circulation of<br /> 12,000 copies for which he received a royalty of<br /> is. $d. a copy, or .£750. The same book issued at<br /> 6d. with a royalty for himself of 1 j&lt;7. would give<br /> him .£750 by a sale of 144,000. But we are going<br /> to the millions. If 600,000 copies were taken he<br /> would make .£3125. Decidedly it would be to<br /> to the advantage of the author if only that ques-<br /> tion of distribution were settled.<br /> I mentioned last month the remarkable fact<br /> that the Committee of the House of Lords on<br /> Copyright had commenced their proceedings by<br /> calling before them a publisher: then a second<br /> publisher: then a third, and so on: and that<br /> there seemed no sign at all that this illustrious<br /> body had ever heard that there was such a thing<br /> as an author, or had any idea at all that copy-<br /> right was created by the author and was actually<br /> his own property. In this ignorance they were<br /> allowed to remain by the publishers, who all gave<br /> evidence on the tacit assumption—which none of<br /> the noble lords questioned—that copyright was<br /> their own in the nature of thiugs: their own<br /> property by right. A day or two after the para-<br /> graph appeared I found a summons lying on my<br /> table calling upon me to attend and give evidence<br /> that day at half-past two. It was then three,<br /> so that I could not go. It is hardly, I think,<br /> polite or considerate to call upon a man to give<br /> evidence on a most complicated and important<br /> subject at a minute&#039;s notice. Moreover, I am<br /> not myself a lawyer: I have never felt called<br /> upon to study copyright law: I hate law and<br /> law books: and I am not therefore com-<br /> petent to give evidence. We have had two sub-<br /> committees on copyright, but I have not been<br /> a member of either. In fact, the branch of<br /> the Society&#039;s work which has occupied all the<br /> time that I could afford to give, is that of the<br /> administration of literary property, not that of<br /> copyright law. Mr. Thring has attended the<br /> Committee, representing our sub-committee, and,<br /> I hope, has enabled the Committee to understand<br /> that copyright really does concern authors: that<br /> they are capable of comprehending the question:<br /> and that the opinion of the lawyers and scholars<br /> forming our sub-committee is quite as well worth<br /> hearing as that of the publishers, who speak as<br /> if copyright was their right.<br /> A correspondent sends me a paragraph calling<br /> attention, with some show of indignation, to the<br /> fact that if anyone posts a book to the United<br /> States of America there is an import duty of<br /> one-fourth its value, and that the duty must be<br /> paid before the book is delivered. It seems a<br /> pity that the law is so, but since that is the law<br /> there is no use in being angry. Free trade in<br /> books does not exist in this country: for instance,<br /> it is illegal to expose Tauchnitz books for sale.<br /> Shall we begin by altering our own laws? We<br /> could then call upon the States to alter theirs.<br /> One of the things which the Society could and<br /> should do would be to bring about the reconsidera-<br /> tion of the Resolutions which constituted the<br /> Civil Pension List. All that is wanted is the<br /> abolition of a single clause allowing the pensions<br /> to be bestowed upon persons outside the field of<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 67 (#79) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 57<br /> Literature, Science, and Art &quot; who may be worthy<br /> of Her Majesty&#039;s bounty.&quot; The grant is not<br /> large, not more than &lt;£i200 a year, and is by no<br /> means sufficient to meet the cases deserving of<br /> relief which are brought before the First Lord of<br /> the Treasury. No one wants to prevent outsiders<br /> from getting the help they want, one only desires<br /> to bind the Government to keep this fund entirely<br /> for the persons for whom it was founded. At<br /> present there is nothing to prevent the list from<br /> being filled up with &quot;persons worthy of Her<br /> Majesty&#039;s bounty.&quot; It is, for instance, a common<br /> practice to place widows and daughters of colonial<br /> governors on the list. In that of the current<br /> year (see p. 64) there are the four daughters of<br /> one colonial governor and the widow of another.<br /> Cannot the Colonies, between them, create a<br /> pension list for the widows and daughters of<br /> their governors? And is it quite impossible for<br /> the governor of a colony to save a little money<br /> after twenty years of work on a salary ranging<br /> from .£2000 to £ 10,000?<br /> In another column appears one more letter on<br /> the great and crying grievance ,oi keeping MSS.<br /> offered to editors. For my own part I have<br /> always desired to recognise to the utmost the<br /> difficulties of an editor&#039;s position: the necessary<br /> keeping back of articles and papers already<br /> accepted. But there are limits. In the case before<br /> us the editor kept articles offered him for two<br /> years, fourteen months, eight months, and three<br /> months! There can be no possible excuse for<br /> such treatment of a contributor. What remedy<br /> is there? One, and one only. Writers will<br /> do nothing for themselves: they are so eager<br /> to be accepted, especially at the outset, that<br /> they will submit to anything and take any<br /> price that is offered. If, then, a contributor<br /> intimates that the MS. must be accepted and paid<br /> for within a certain time, he will probably have<br /> it returned unless the writer&#039;s name and the<br /> subject make it an important offer. The only<br /> remedy, therefore, is that the editors who do<br /> these things shall be known. If the writer of<br /> the letter will send me the correspondence in the<br /> .case I will publish his name and the name of the<br /> paper. Of course there is another remedy, but it<br /> qeems hardly worth while to mention it. I mean<br /> that editors should obey the simple rules of<br /> courtesy and good breeding. I have always<br /> found them, as regards myself, both courteous<br /> and kindly. But the letters which we have<br /> published in The Author show that there are<br /> many editors, especially of the smaller fry of<br /> magazines, who are neither one nor the other.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> vol. IX.<br /> AFTER MANY DATS.<br /> A True Incident.<br /> IAM very sorry, Miss Carlisle; but I am<br /> afraid I cannot use that last story of<br /> yours. It is altogether too depressing.<br /> The public does not want sad stories. Life is<br /> sad enough as it is. No one likes to dwell on<br /> such incidents as you describe in—let me see,<br /> what do you call it ?—&#039; Dead Violets &#039;? Why<br /> the very title is morbid! Dead violets delight<br /> no one; what we want is fair, fresh, sweet-<br /> smelling flowers.&quot;<br /> The speaker&#039;s looks accorded with his words.<br /> He was a man advanced in life, with hair tinged<br /> with grey and a forehead #hich showed more<br /> than a tendency to baldness; but he had as<br /> bright, open, and cheery a countenance as ever<br /> beamed from an editor&#039;s chair. He bore himself<br /> with the easy yet kindly dignity which denotes a<br /> prosperous career.<br /> &quot;I am very sorry,&quot; the girl&#039;s lips trembled<br /> as she spoke, and it was all she could do to hold<br /> back the starting tears; &quot;I will try to do better<br /> next time.&quot; .<br /> She was young, but her face had a worn and<br /> weary look. . There was the suggestion &#039;of a<br /> happier past in her somewhat shabby, though<br /> perfectly neat, mourning attire. She* had the<br /> appearance of one to whom dead violets might<br /> mean more than freshly gathered roses. The<br /> editor was not unconscious of the pathos of her<br /> expression, nor the tremor of her voice; but he<br /> was above all things a man of business, and he<br /> knew that melancholy stories did not pay.<br /> &quot;That&#039;s right,&quot; he said, &quot;let it be something<br /> cheerful, ending with the music of marriage bells.<br /> That is what our readers like. I am really<br /> afraid I must send that MS. back to you.&quot;<br /> &quot;Very well—if it must be so.&quot;<br /> She acquiesced without a murmur, bade him<br /> good morning, and went on her way.<br /> He was sorry for her; but he was far from<br /> guessing how deep a wound he had inflicted.<br /> Edith Carlisle went down the long flight of<br /> stairs from the editorial sanctum, passed into the<br /> Strand, and was lost in the stream of human life<br /> ever flowing along its pavements. Of all the<br /> units that composed that stream, not one perhaps<br /> carried a heavier heart than hers. It was of the<br /> irony of life that the editor should bid her write<br /> a story which &quot;ended with the music of marri-<br /> age bells&quot; just when her own lone story had<br /> come to a disastrous termination.<br /> The sudden and unlooked-for death of her<br /> father had wrought a pitiful change in the cir-<br /> cumstances of Edith Carlisle&#039;s life. Tt left her<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 68 (#80) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 68<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> mother almost entirely dependent on her<br /> daughter&#039;s efforts for a maintenance. Edith<br /> found it incumbent on her to break off her<br /> engagement to a certain good-hearted but by no<br /> means prosperous young man. They bad parted<br /> as she believed for ever, and he had gone abroad;<br /> Edith devoted herself to the care of her mother,<br /> whose failing health caused her much anxiety.<br /> She had a daily teaching engagement, and when<br /> this was over she gave her spare time to the<br /> literary efforts which she had pursued with some<br /> slight success ere her father&#039;s death, and the con-<br /> sequent struggle for life, converted what had<br /> been a pure pleasure into a feverish attempt to<br /> produce that which would bring in money.<br /> The new motive did not yield the highest inspi-<br /> ration. Heartbroken at the loss of her lover,<br /> harassed by a thousand petty and humiliating<br /> cares, and depressed by her growing anxiety on her<br /> mother&#039;s account, Edith was not in a condition to<br /> conceive the bright fresh stories which delight<br /> editors. Yet never had she been more wishful<br /> for success. So much depended on her earning<br /> money. &quot;Dead Violets &quot; had been written with<br /> the eager hope that it might bring in a sum<br /> sufficient to afford her mother the fortnight at<br /> the sea-side which the doctor declared would do<br /> her more good than any medicine. Edith had<br /> written as her heart dictated, embodying in the<br /> tale somewhat of her own sad experience. She<br /> believed she had written it well. Certainly it was<br /> true to life. And now it appeared that it was too<br /> true to life! People must be amused with false<br /> pictures of impossible happiness. &quot;Dead Violets&quot;<br /> was &quot;morbid&quot; and &quot; depressing.&quot;<br /> It was a grievous disappointment; but happily<br /> Edith had not confided her hopes to her mother,<br /> so she alone was disappointed. For a few days<br /> she looked for the return of her MS.; it did not<br /> come, and she soon forgot to expect it. She had<br /> no hope that the story would find acceptance in<br /> any other quarter. She regarded the sentence<br /> passed upon it by the editor of the Weekly<br /> Adviser, in which several of her stories had pre-<br /> viously appeared, as final. Had the MS. come<br /> back into her hands they would have committed<br /> it to the flames.<br /> So there was no summer holiday for Edith<br /> and her mother that year. Mrs. Carlisle&#039;s health<br /> failed rapidly in the hot close days, and ere the<br /> cooler weather set in she died. Edith&#039;s life was<br /> painfully lonely after her mother&#039;s death. She<br /> had lost all knowledge of her lover, and she had<br /> few friends. She sought relief in work. She<br /> worked harder than ever with her pen, and she<br /> worked to good purpose. She began to attain<br /> some literary success. Ten years passed by, and<br /> her position had considerably improved. She<br /> was on the staff of a popular magazine, and she-<br /> had written one or two books for girls which<br /> found a good sale. She had ceased to write for<br /> the Weekly Adviser. The cheery editor who<br /> did not like melancholy stories had gone over to<br /> the majority; she knew nothing of the man who<br /> had succeeded him. Great was her surprise,<br /> therefore, when she one day received through the<br /> post a roll of proofs in a wrapper bearing the<br /> name of that well-known weekly. &quot;This is a<br /> mistake,&quot; she said to herself, as she unfolded the<br /> sheets; but as she glanced over the printing a<br /> name here and there caught her eye which struck<br /> her as strangely familiar. The thing was not new,<br /> though it seemed as vague and distant as a<br /> dreain. What could it mean? She turned to<br /> look for the title. &quot;Dead Violets&quot; met her eye.<br /> The story pronounced &quot;too depressing,&quot; more<br /> than ten years before, had lain in the office of the<br /> Weekly Adviser ever since, and now, unearthed<br /> by some chance, had found favour with the new<br /> editor, and was set up in type.<br /> With strangely mingled feelings Edith read the<br /> story written so long before. Her heart was<br /> painfully thrilled by the memories it invoked. It<br /> seemed at once better and worse than she had<br /> deemed it in the old days. There were crudities<br /> of style, and a youthful exuberance of expression<br /> which jarred on her more cultured taste; but the<br /> story was alive. It was very sad—depressing, no<br /> doubt—btit yet a bit of real life, written with a<br /> throbbing heart, from the depths of her own<br /> experience. Her first impulse had been to write<br /> and forbid its publication; but on second thoughts<br /> she decided to let it appear with such slight im-<br /> provements as she could make on the proofs.<br /> The revision was painful work. She could not<br /> but think how much it would have meant to her<br /> had the story found acceptance when it was first<br /> submitted to an editor. Who could say? Her<br /> mother&#039;s life might have been prolonged—even<br /> saved, perhaps—had she been able at that time<br /> to command the sum which this story would<br /> bring her. But it was vain to dwell on that now.<br /> The story had been written for her mother&#039;s sake,<br /> and to her loved memory should its price be<br /> devoted Edith had never yet been able to place<br /> a suitable memorial above her mother&#039;s grave in<br /> the crowded London cemetery. For some time<br /> she had been slowly saving with this object in<br /> view; now this story would supply what was<br /> needed to make the amount sufficient.<br /> So, when the editor of the Weekly Adviser<br /> sent his cheque for six guineas, the money went<br /> to complete this fund, and in due time a simple<br /> granite cross marked the mound of earth so<br /> sacred to the author of &quot;Dead Violets.&quot; The<br /> associations of that title were full of sadness for<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 69 (#81) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR<br /> 69<br /> Edith, but she never blamed the editor who had<br /> rejected the story when fresh from her pen. He<br /> had acted for the best. He was bound to consult<br /> the pleasure of his readers and the interests of<br /> his paper. It was doubtless by accident that the<br /> MS. had never been returned to her. She could<br /> have had it had she cared to apply for it. The<br /> fact of her story&#039;s attaining publication after so<br /> many years was just one of those strange chances<br /> which continually attend the fortunes of a literary<br /> career.<br /> *&gt;•«.;<br /> AFTER PUBLICATION—THE FATE<br /> OF A BOOK.<br /> IN the March number of The Author I found<br /> (1) a paragraph relating the troubles of a<br /> member of the Society whose reviews,<br /> although excellent, have failed to circulate his<br /> books; and (2) a sentence, cited from an article<br /> in the Fortnightly :—&quot; I know one bookseller<br /> who, when he finds a eulogistic review of a new<br /> book, instantly cuts it out and displays it in a<br /> conspicuous manner. He tells me the system is a<br /> gratifying success.&quot;<br /> We have, in the foregoing, some suggestions<br /> and experiences which may help to throw some<br /> light on that mysterious period of a book&#039;s<br /> career—the period when, just hot from the press,<br /> it is as yet undetermined whether it will be a<br /> failure or success.<br /> Let us consider this subject under four<br /> heads: (1) The book and the reviewer, (2) the<br /> review and the public, (3) the book and the book-<br /> seller, (4) the book and the public.<br /> 1. The Book and the Reviewer.—It is evident<br /> that there must exist a great disparity between<br /> the careful and exhaustive, if not always unpre-<br /> judiced criticisms of the great quarterlies in<br /> their palmy days, and the hasty rule-of-thumb<br /> &quot;notices&quot; of the thousand and one journals<br /> wedging in a weekly or fortnightly &quot;literary<br /> article&quot; amongst columns of sporting, commer-<br /> cial, fashionable, and other &quot;intelligence.&quot; In<br /> the latter case, literature is treated as one only,<br /> and by no means an exceedingly important one, of<br /> the many interests which a daily journal reflects,<br /> and the object is, no doubt, to give the reader an<br /> idea of what is &quot;doing&quot; in the world of letters,<br /> rather than to attempt seriously the work of<br /> instructive and discriminating criticism.<br /> It is of course true, and every author will admit<br /> it, that the views taken by reviewers are as<br /> various and as many as the actual number of<br /> minds concerned in writing the notices in ques-<br /> tion. The demerits cited by one, are considered<br /> &quot;characteristic touches&quot; by another. What one<br /> critic describes as &quot; cheap sarcasm&quot; another will<br /> call &quot;profound psychological analysis,&quot; and so<br /> forth. There may be more than one reason for<br /> this. It is no doubt true, as the Editor of The<br /> Author has repeatedly pointed out, that no critic<br /> can afford to exercise reflective judgment on a<br /> work when the result of that judgment has to<br /> be condensed into a few lines, and remunerated<br /> accordingly. But, with every respect to reviewers<br /> as a class, it may be suggested that a great review<br /> can only proceed from a mind specially qualified<br /> by nature and by training for this particular<br /> work, and that to sum up the results of superior<br /> constructive ability intelligently, requires critical<br /> ability of 110 common order.<br /> These considerations lead us to inquire whether<br /> the function of the reviewer as now exercised does<br /> not require modification—whether, in fact, the<br /> whole system of literary notices might not be<br /> organised on an entirely different basis with<br /> advantage to all concerned.<br /> Granted that it is the object of the literary<br /> column in the great provincial journals and in the<br /> more important weeklies, to reflect the current,<br /> activity in the world of letters—to give, as we<br /> have said, an idea of what is &quot; doing &quot; in the way.<br /> of book production—it is clear that this end<br /> might be quite as effectually attained by making<br /> these columns the channels of a flowing stream of<br /> criticism derived from one or more deep artesian<br /> fountains, rather than, as at present, by attempt-<br /> ing an outpouring of not too drinkable water<br /> derived from more shallow wells, sunk on the<br /> premises.<br /> Less metaphorically, why should not the literary<br /> column, instead of attempting to reflect the whole<br /> world of books, confine itself to a summary,<br /> intelligently commented upon, of the said world<br /> as seen through the spectacles of the great critical<br /> journals?<br /> To the ordinary cultivated reader it would be<br /> far more provocative of interest in a particular<br /> book if, in his local journal, say the North of<br /> England Mercury, he should find short sum-<br /> maries of criticism on, say, &quot;The Three Fishes,<br /> a Tale of Grammarye,&quot; culled from the Athenaeum,<br /> the Spectator, Literature, &amp;c., &amp;c., instead of<br /> merely the less valuable lucubrations of the local<br /> gentleman who &quot;does&quot; the reviews for that<br /> influential county organ. Possibly in nine cases<br /> out of ten the local gentleman in question would<br /> be by no means averse to the change himself. If<br /> he felt moved to dissent from the opinions of the<br /> greater lights, it would be open to him to prove<br /> them in the wrong. It would also be a light and<br /> pleasing exercise for him to discriminate between<br /> and enlarge upon the spectacle of the Olympians<br /> themselves, utterly at loggerheads over the moral<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 70 (#82) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 7o<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> conduct of the &quot;Fisher of Souls &quot; in the above-<br /> mentioned romance.<br /> And what a weary waste of labour he would be<br /> relieved from, in no longer being compelled to<br /> frame platitudes about the worthless thoughts<br /> of commonplace people that, somehow or other,<br /> have got themselves introduced to the world as<br /> &quot;characters&quot; in a so-called novel.<br /> If this change were brought about there would,<br /> of course, still remain the burning question of<br /> the &quot;canons of criticism&quot;—those canons by<br /> which the Olympians themselves are to be guided,<br /> first, in determining if a new book be worthy of<br /> their attention; secondly, in weighing-up the<br /> statements, theories, or positions of the writer.<br /> Mr. Hannigan, in the March Author, has made<br /> a courageous attempt to formulate some of these,<br /> but as by his own admission the Waverley novels<br /> (including &quot;Ivanhoe &quot;?) fall short of his par-<br /> ticular standard, it is to be feared that his formula<br /> needs considerable amendment.<br /> Having regard to the complexity of human life,<br /> and in particular to the fact that progress in<br /> every department of human activity is the final<br /> result of a number of concurrent, heterogeneous,<br /> often conflicting influences, it is evident that no<br /> canon of criticism can hope to include all possible<br /> cases. In modern and present day matters it is<br /> probable that, even were such canon recognised, it<br /> would pass the limits of &quot;the wit of man &quot; to<br /> dispassionately apply it. We must, therefore, as<br /> heretofore, trust to the human element—to the<br /> reflections and judgments of the recognised<br /> critical authorities; and even these will assuredly<br /> often prove to be all wrong, because the human<br /> mind is not an infallible machine.<br /> . For the present, at any rate, we will not attempt<br /> to penetrate the mists that surround Olympus.<br /> We will imagine the review written, disseminated<br /> by means of the &quot;literary column&quot; to the half<br /> million interested in such matters, and served up<br /> with the coffee at the breakfast table. The ques-<br /> tion now becomes, &quot;What is the effect?&quot;<br /> - 2. The Review and the Public.—Each one of<br /> us has, no doubt, in his remembrance an instance,<br /> when, having read the &quot; notice &quot; of a book, a con-<br /> suming desire to have and handle that book has<br /> for a few hours possessed us. Our enthusiasm<br /> And curiosity during this brief phase has been<br /> raised, it may be, to a 10s. 6d. level, or it may<br /> be only to a 6s. pitch. But we have felt toler-<br /> ably certain that, if the much-desired volume<br /> were within reach, we should purchase it at all<br /> hazards, and in defiance of the whispers of<br /> prudence and economy.<br /> This is the first psychological moment in the<br /> history of the &quot; review.&quot; When it has died away,<br /> unsatisfied, the review has passed stage one in its<br /> career of usefulness, and has entered on stage<br /> two, in which it is only fit for abstract, and repro-<br /> duction along with others.<br /> The later stage is perhaps a more lasting one.<br /> From a number of &quot; notices &quot; the juice or essence,<br /> not the bitter essence, but the sweet, is extracted,<br /> and the cumulative effect of pithy sentence upon<br /> pithy sentence, each followed by the name of some<br /> great piece amongst the heavy ordnance of<br /> literature, is no doubt very great. The wavering<br /> mind remembering its past and momentary<br /> enthusiasm over this particular work of genius,<br /> greedily responds to the tickling, the gentle<br /> stimulus of so many laudatory phrases, and<br /> arrives at a fixed determination, not necessarily<br /> to buy, but to &quot;look out&quot; for this book. This is<br /> psychological moment No. 2. Whether it bears<br /> fruit depends upon the accessibility of the work,<br /> and this brings us to—<br /> 3. The Book and the Bookseller.—-The &quot;publi-<br /> cation&quot; of a book is a very vague expression.<br /> Too often it means the languishing of the<br /> majority of the so-published volumes in the state<br /> of &quot; quires&quot; upon the shelves of an unromantic<br /> warehouse. Now, it is very clear that a book<br /> stands very much in the same light as any other<br /> manufactured article from the point of view of<br /> the person who has to sell it to the public. The<br /> first cry of the would-be purchaser is &quot; samples &quot;;<br /> the second, &quot;samples &quot;; the third, &quot;samples.&quot;<br /> It is, of course, obvious that a book, however<br /> large, cannot very well be distributed in small<br /> gratis doses like, for instance, X.&#039;s celebrated<br /> cocoa. And though it is no doubt true that the<br /> whole office of the &quot;review&quot; and the &quot;notice&quot;<br /> is to guide the public taste, yet we must not<br /> forget that X., too, has his &quot;Press notices,&quot;<br /> his &quot;testimonials,&quot; and other printed matter<br /> descriptive of the merits of his cocoa, and, in<br /> addition, does not disregard the uses of adver-<br /> tisement, but after all he relies upon |the gratis<br /> sample.<br /> In the opinion of the writer it is not so much<br /> the producing as the distributing system of the<br /> book trade that is out of gear. Publishers them-<br /> selves, those keen business men, seem helpless.<br /> They blame the author, they blame the bookseller,<br /> they groan over the discount system, they cry<br /> out at the burden of the review copy, they pro-<br /> phesy, they menace, but the end of all the stir<br /> is &quot;much cry and little wool.&quot; The unsold<br /> &quot;quires&quot; lie limp and lonely upon the warehouse<br /> shelves, the bookseller puts a few copies of<br /> standard authors in his windows, and the pur-<br /> chaser bursting into his shop with enthusiasm,<br /> red-hot from a perusal of the &quot;essence of<br /> review&quot; above mentioned, is met with the cold<br /> and damping remark that &quot;We haven&#039;t the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 71 (#83) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> book in stook, but we can get it.&quot; And, in not a<br /> few cases, out he goes again, never to return.<br /> This is not business; it is not even common<br /> sense. It is not encouraging trade, it is stifling<br /> its nascent struggles. And the result is per-<br /> petual recrimination and unrest. Let us now<br /> look at the whole matter from another stand-<br /> point.<br /> 4. The Booh and the Public.—Ah, this dear<br /> Public! How noble he is. So unlike a reviewer,<br /> unlike even a publisher. We may bully him to<br /> our heart&#039;s content, and he will like us all the<br /> better for it. Each of us feels that, could we<br /> but stand face to face with him, and gain his ear,<br /> he would extend the right hand of fellowship to<br /> us, in sheer admiration of our splendid thoughts.<br /> Faith, it is a strange spectacle, this poor, weary,<br /> jaded Public, ever seeking for some new thing,<br /> and all this galaxy of talent eager to woo his<br /> attention and charm him from his abject melan-<br /> choly. And between, the impalpable shadow of<br /> Destiny, the mocking spectral Fate that keeps him<br /> still with head on hand, writhing with ennui—<br /> whilst our own enthralling work, epic, comedy, or<br /> jeremiad, as the case may be, lies upon the<br /> shelves, chemically decomposing into grainless<br /> dust.<br /> It is easy to understand how a book may be a<br /> great success. Touching, even though only by<br /> accident, on the inmost fibres of the human heart,<br /> will do it, even though every canon of criticism,<br /> and every rule of grammar has been violated in<br /> the doing of it. Perhaps Mr. Vincent Heward<br /> (March Author, p. 269) has not inaptly put it,<br /> when he says &quot; style and form are graceful adorn-<br /> ments, but what of the body they are to adorn?&quot;<br /> Emotion communicates itself like Same. The<br /> reader that has been thrilled is eager that<br /> others shall experience like pleasure. And thus<br /> comes the great success. Merely intellectual<br /> satisfaction the reader is more continent of.<br /> He says &quot;Clever chap that,&quot; but the world<br /> does not glow the brighter for a mere sparkle<br /> of the mind. Yet even if we recognise that<br /> there are many kinds of cleverness which<br /> merely stimulate superficially without turning the<br /> reader&#039;s nervous system into a red-hot furnace<br /> full of sympathetic flames, it is not easy to say<br /> why books of undoubted merit are often not<br /> merely &quot;not very successful,&quot; but, on the con-<br /> trary, total and abject failures.<br /> It would seem that there must be a reason, and<br /> a remediable reason, for this, since it is idle to<br /> blame the public for neglecting a clever work,<br /> because the public&#039;s appetite for any sort of<br /> clever work is, there is plenty of evidence to<br /> show, insatiable.<br /> We have seen that a clever work addressed to<br /> the emotions, succeeds, because it is advertised by<br /> the public itself. It spreads like fever, like panic,<br /> or any sort of contagion—and then after a time a<br /> further influence comes into play—it becomes<br /> &quot;fashionable.&quot; The obvious corollary is that<br /> works of merit (e.g„ those mentioned on.p. 260)<br /> which are total failures, are only total failures<br /> because, not being of the class that advertise<br /> themselves, they have not in reality been adver-<br /> tised at all. Or to speak with precision, they<br /> have not been brought before the public in a way<br /> that has any practical influence on the public.<br /> And this will still be true, if many scores of<br /> pounds have been spent in advertising, and if<br /> every journal in the kingdom has spoken favour-<br /> ably of the work.<br /> Enter any shop where a large trade is done in<br /> non-copyright books and cheap editions. Observe<br /> the purchasers. In nine cases out of ten the<br /> purchaser goes into the shop with a vague flavour<br /> in his mouth, a half-felt craving for some par-<br /> ticular class of mental stimulus. It may be<br /> adventure by sea, or by land, the mazy thread of<br /> a detective tale, a &quot; society&quot; story, and so on. He<br /> wanders round the well-filled shelves, peeping<br /> into this, reading a few pages, passing on to that,<br /> until at length he finds something to his taste,<br /> pays his money cheerfully, and goes out in<br /> feverish haste to make acquaintance with his new<br /> friends.<br /> The deduction is obvious.<br /> What is really required to give a stimulus to<br /> the profession of the author, to the business of<br /> the publisher, to the trade of the bookseller, is<br /> reorganisation of existing relationships. The<br /> following seem reasonable suggestions. It is<br /> not pretended that they are now offered for the<br /> first time.<br /> (1). Fewer reviews, but those few written by<br /> the best available men, bent,not upon &quot;slashing&quot;<br /> the author, nor expatiating to a disproportionate<br /> extent upon mannerisms and style, nor exhibit-<br /> ing encyclopaedic learning, but on viewing<br /> the constructive work of their contemporaries<br /> as part of the zeit-geist in a calm and philo-<br /> sophic way.<br /> (2.) The abolition, to a large extent, of the<br /> &quot;notice,&quot; which at its best is a waste of energy<br /> and space. A short statement of the plot or<br /> purport of the commonplace and generally un-<br /> worthy book might be substituted. Such state-<br /> ment signifying neither praise nor blame.<br /> (3). The introduction of much closer and more<br /> sympathetic relationship between publishers as a<br /> body and booksellers as a body. This is, of<br /> course, a vague and trite remark, and looks at<br /> first sight suspiciously like a pious wish, but it<br /> is the real focus at which all the evolutionary<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 72 (#84) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 1*.<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> forces at present working blindly in the world of<br /> books will presently be concentrated. We need<br /> not, however, discuss this from the point of view<br /> of the publisher; we will consider only what the<br /> author wants, whether he gets it directly or in-<br /> directly.<br /> In every large town there should be many, in<br /> every small town there should be one bookseller<br /> who is not merely a tradesman, but an expert—<br /> the guide, philosopher, and friend of the book<br /> buyer. In his shop should be found every book<br /> reviewed by the critical journals, sent there on<br /> &quot;sale or return&quot; by the publisher. Of course this<br /> does not apply to Editions de luxe or specially<br /> expensive works—only to the rank and file of<br /> books that will be purchased by the public at<br /> large. There, too, would be found copies of those<br /> less successful works, open to everyone&#039;s examina-<br /> tion; and it can hardly be argued that they would<br /> not be better disposed of in this way than decay-<br /> ing on- the warehouse shelves. An unsold re-<br /> mainder of 500 copies would go a long way dis-<br /> tributed amongst the chief booksellers of the<br /> kingdom. It is very certain that such shops,<br /> established as a recognised and flourishing institu-<br /> tion in every town, selling all kinds of printed<br /> matter, would become the happy hunting ground<br /> of the public in search of a book, and that the<br /> scandal of works of merit proving financially<br /> disastrous, as in the case of our unfortunate<br /> fellow member, would cease to press on our atten-<br /> tion.<br /> The Public, entering the shop, either to behold<br /> with his own eyes that clever work of which he<br /> has just read the advertised &quot;essence of review,&quot;<br /> or, on the other hand, merely desirous of finding<br /> something suitable to his present mood, would<br /> scan eagerly not only the works of A., B., and C.<br /> —celebrated authors—but also of X., Y., and Z.,<br /> coming men, who, however, have not yet arrived.<br /> And it is much more likely that he will invest in<br /> the scintillating wit of X., Y., and Z., after having<br /> had the opportunity of mentally measuring it,<br /> than that he should speculate in the work of an<br /> unknown name on the faith of an advertisement.<br /> Besides, to be told that the books of a particular<br /> writer are not &quot; kept in stock&quot; leads oue, uncon-<br /> sciously, to rank that writer as a second-rate one.<br /> The influence of fashion is often strongest where<br /> it is least visible.<br /> It would appear that the bookseller is de-<br /> serving of the tenderest care at the hands of the<br /> author. He is the advance-guard, the outpost of<br /> literature, and his position should be strengthened<br /> as far as possible. Enlisting his sympathies, the<br /> author has a thousand Argus-eyed auxiliaries<br /> working for him, pointing out his merits, holding<br /> him up to the omnivorous public as a person<br /> whose acquaintance (at the published price) it is<br /> desirable to cultivate.<br /> The idea may be Utopian, but like many<br /> Utopias it is a pleasant one to contemplate.<br /> N. C.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—The Civil List.<br /> IN the copy of The Author for July, which has<br /> just reached me, you do not mention the grant<br /> (the pension, rather) of .£20 a year which has<br /> been awarded me from the Civil List. As I owe<br /> it entirely to the action of the Society of Authors,<br /> who most generously signed a petition on my<br /> behalf, I think some acknowledgment should be<br /> made in The Author. I am deeply grateful to<br /> the Society for their kind interest, and for the<br /> effort they made to help me. I may have hoped<br /> for a more generous award, but that does not<br /> affect my lively sense of the sympathy that has<br /> been shown me by my fellow authors, which has<br /> touched me most deeply. I thank them—and I<br /> thank you—most heartily.<br /> Frances Marshall (Alan St. Aubyn).<br /> July 8.<br /> II.—The Struggle for Recognition.<br /> Do unknown authors, with touching faith in<br /> their own creations, and still more touching<br /> expectancy in regard to payment, truly realise<br /> the utter hopelessness, the dreary waste of time<br /> involved in sending out their literary samples to<br /> up-to-date editors or publishers&#039; readers? Do<br /> they quite understand the appalling difficulties in<br /> the path of poverty, with a more than glutted<br /> market to meet—and poverty is always left to the<br /> sweet silence of solitude? To get a serial story<br /> accepted at, say, .£3 weekly in a penny paper is<br /> the most practical way of earning a pittance in<br /> fiction; but even here there are thousands ready<br /> to do the work for half, and to do it remarkably<br /> well. Besides, the relatives of the proprietor or<br /> editor are always delighted to offer their services,<br /> and to steal all the &quot;plums &quot; from any proffered<br /> manuscripts. It is almost invariably the rich<br /> author who succeeds—the man or woman with a<br /> good income, irrespective of any literary earnings.<br /> Money lavished on advertising can make the<br /> dullest seaside story the fashion, and hence<br /> create a run on it. It is the moneyed power<br /> behind a book that will make it &quot; go.&quot;<br /> It is the greedy capitalist, without a literary<br /> instinct, commencing perhaps as some shrewd<br /> newspaper clerk, who through lucky chances and<br /> solid backers can buy up papers one after the<br /> other, and ruin their owners, like a huge serpent<br /> swallowing lesser ones.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 73 (#85) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 73<br /> He commands the market. He may, and<br /> probably does, prefer twaddle, because he finds it<br /> sell, so he buys it and backed up by his capital<br /> it goes very well; it is so safe and everyone can<br /> of course understand, and be soothed or cheered<br /> by it. Does the poor and struggling author<br /> quite grasp these hard facts in an age of greed,<br /> of humbug, and of callous commercialism? It<br /> is easier to sell to twenty capitalists than to one.<br /> The wealthy authoress, reclining among her<br /> cushions in Worth&#039;s latest tea-gown, glittering in<br /> diamonds, and interviewed by a reporter awed<br /> into respect by her surroundings, has nothing to<br /> fear. Her books will sell because her money,<br /> position, and interest, can make them the fashion,<br /> and guileless reviewers have a singular faculty<br /> for appreciating these apparently hidden mys-<br /> teries. She appeals in some way to their inner<br /> consciousness. The illustrated interviews—the<br /> smart little pars—the advertisements—the large<br /> social connections—the money and the pushing<br /> publisher do the rest. It is precisely the same<br /> with the wealthy author. Let struggling aspi-<br /> rants moved by philosophic doubts ponder well<br /> over the injustice and indifference meted every-<br /> where to the poor. Annabel Gray.<br /> [The above, whose signature commands atten-<br /> tion, deals with the difficulties which beset the<br /> path of young writers. I would willingly believe<br /> that the picture is exaggerated. It is doubtless<br /> true that the difficulties are tremendous ; but does<br /> not the nature of the work—the magnitude of<br /> the prize, which is not, like the prize of trade, one<br /> of money only, but of honour, consideration, and<br /> respect—necessitate these difficulties?<br /> To write seems so easy: when one has written<br /> the product seems to the writer so beautiful: the<br /> success of so many seems so easily achieved: the<br /> literary value of successful work seems to the<br /> young writer so much below his own work: that<br /> not only is the editor bombarded and pelted with<br /> MSS., but the disappointment of the unsuccessful<br /> is keen beyond any other kind of disappoint-<br /> ment. It is bitter for the man with the red<br /> lamp to see his old friend of student days<br /> making his ten thousand a year as a consulting<br /> physician, but it is far more bitter for an<br /> aspirant to see the success of a work which in his<br /> own mind he ranks far below his own. I have<br /> always been of opinion that good work makes its<br /> own way. Even supposing that push and<br /> advertising can advance a book not worth<br /> advertising, there remains the question whether<br /> any fine piece of work can be named which<br /> has failed to make its mark any time<br /> during the last ten years. Again, it is true<br /> that there are thousands who can turn out MSS.<br /> resembling good work and for nothing or next to<br /> nothing; the fact remains that it is not really<br /> good work, and the journals which &quot;go in&quot; for<br /> cheapn- ss do not thrive by cheapness. The only<br /> remedy is patience. When people agree to con-<br /> sider writing as a kind of work that has to be<br /> paid for, like cabinet making, there will spring up<br /> some feeling as to sweating writers, just as there<br /> is about sweating needlewomen. Yet the sweat-<br /> ing will be carried on.<br /> Again, can it be said that MSS. are plundered<br /> of their contents &#039;{ Such a thing might conceiv-<br /> ably take place and with impunity: but it must<br /> be very rare, if only on account of the vast<br /> masses of MSS. which are daily sent into the<br /> editor. Has Annabel Gray any facts in support<br /> of this suggestion?<br /> Then, is it the rich writer who suceeeds? I<br /> should say that it is the successful writer, as a<br /> rule, has nothing except the stimulus of poverty.<br /> Writers as a rule never do have anything to<br /> begin with. One need not quote examples of<br /> living men: of dead men we may mention<br /> Dickens, Leigh Hunt, Douglas Jerrold, Marryatt<br /> —none of them had anything to begin with.<br /> However, this is how it seems to Annabel Gray.<br /> —Ed.] c-=i<br /> III.—The Seamy Side.<br /> Do not your occasional contributors tell us too<br /> much about their grievances and too little about<br /> their success? All publishers arc not necessarily<br /> sharks, and some editors are distinctly human—<br /> as you, Sir, have frequently borne witness. I<br /> personally have had two good doses of disappoint-<br /> ment and disillusion—each one of which my<br /> candid friends have interpreted as Divine warn-<br /> ings that I should take Mr. Grant Allen&#039;s advice<br /> and buy a good broom and annex a vacant<br /> crossing, but I am bound to add that I agree<br /> with Mr. Coulson Kernahan, in his preface to<br /> &quot;Sorrow and Song,&quot; that for kindness of heart<br /> men of letters have no equal. The gentlemen<br /> who write you frequently profess to be anxious<br /> to assist the young author. Would they not help<br /> him more effectually if they told him some of<br /> the good things that had happened to them?<br /> At present they seem to unite to quench your<br /> cheery optimism, and to make poor beginners like<br /> myself wonder whether any good thing can come<br /> to the producer from the world of books!<br /> Stanhope Sprigg.<br /> IV.—Hard Treatment in Australia.<br /> You may be interested to hear that cases of<br /> hardship to young writers occur in this new land<br /> similar to those published in your columns.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 74 (#86) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 74<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> In the months of July and August of last year<br /> an advertisement appeared in the columns of the<br /> Bulletin, which you may know is the leading<br /> paper of its class in the colonies, to the effect<br /> that the Coolgardie Courier (W. A.) would give<br /> prizes of &#039;&#039; six, four, and two guineas for the<br /> three best original stories illustrative of life in<br /> Australasia,&quot; and, furthermore, that the pro-<br /> prietors of the paper would make a donation of<br /> one guinea to any tale published other than the<br /> prize winners.<br /> Satisfied that the advertisement signed by such<br /> a well-known proprietor was genuine, I entered<br /> MSS. of two stories for the competition, but from<br /> that time no further reference was made to it in<br /> any paper.<br /> I have obtained a file of the Coolgardie<br /> Courier from July of last year up to date, and<br /> find there is absolutely no mention of any com-<br /> petition in its columns. No stories whatever have<br /> appeared in it but those culled from English and<br /> other journals.<br /> I ascertained from the Bulletin office that the<br /> advertisement was a bond fide one, and then<br /> wrote to the Courier asking an explanation and<br /> for my MSS. The latter arrived this morning<br /> (in a very dilapidated condition), but no letter or<br /> memorandum accompanied it, so the why and<br /> wherefore of the business is still a mystery.<br /> I have also suffered this year at the hands<br /> of a Sydney newspaper, which published tales of<br /> mine in its December and January numbers and<br /> for which I am unable to get payment.<br /> I previously won a prize competition of this<br /> journal which was paid promptly enough. I have<br /> put the present matter into a solicitor&#039;s care, and<br /> would like to let you know result.<br /> Ada A. Kidgell.<br /> 39, Hunter-street, Sydney.<br /> V.—Proposed Journal tor Amateurs.<br /> Referring to your remarks on amateur produc-<br /> tions, are you not a little unjust to that unhappy<br /> individual? His work is sure to be weak and<br /> flabby, you say, and no one would care to read it.<br /> Consequently an amateur magazine must be a<br /> collection of drivel. Now, I understand an<br /> amateur to be a person who has not had the<br /> good luck to get his or her work accepted, and so<br /> the majority of our distinguished authors for<br /> some period of their lives came under that<br /> category. Their work was not worthless by any<br /> means.<br /> I have been told by a talented LL.D. of keen<br /> critical ability that my work is above the average<br /> of published novels, and, though I am afraid to<br /> believe him, I certainly consider it has redeemed<br /> itself from flabbiness. But, even if it were as<br /> good as your own, that fact would not insure its<br /> acceptance, seeing that there is scarcely room on<br /> the booksellers&#039; shelves for the work of old hands.<br /> There is no earthly reason why an amateur who<br /> has been writing for some time should not be as<br /> good as the average professional, and if there is<br /> the faintest hope of his ever becoming known in<br /> the literary world, he must turn out something<br /> far superior to our usual literary fare.<br /> A few years ago I used to take in an amateur<br /> monthly which contained very good articles by<br /> Mary L. Pendred. This lady has since placed<br /> books on the market and figured in the Idler,<br /> and I should like to know whether she was<br /> &quot;ashamed&quot; of what she had done for the little<br /> amateur when she found herself on the giddy<br /> heights of professionalism. Inconnu.<br /> VI.—Stale MSS.<br /> Your correspondents complain of their MSS.<br /> being kept months for publication—or a year or<br /> two; but I think I can beat the record. One<br /> was six years old when it appeared, but the<br /> editor offered me a larger cheque in consequence.<br /> Two or three have been buried four years, and<br /> when printed T scarcely knew my own produc-<br /> tions. Certainly I felt then that I could have<br /> done better. As these were illustrated articles<br /> 5 per cent. interest for four years represents £2!<br /> MSS. ought to be paid on delivery, or else 4 or<br /> 5 per cent. charged for credit.<br /> A Patient Scribe.<br /> VII.—Personal.<br /> Nearly all the reviews of &quot; The Actor-Manager&quot;<br /> contain the statement that I am novelist, drama-<br /> tist, and actor in one: &quot;Jack of all trades, and<br /> master of none&quot; will probably be added soon.<br /> May I beg you to serve me by correcting the<br /> misapprehension? My experience as an actor<br /> was very brief, and I left the theatrical profes-<br /> sion when I was three-and-twenty. I am simply<br /> a novelist who has collaborated in two or three<br /> plays. If you would say so, I should be extremely<br /> grateful for your kindness.<br /> Leonard Merrick.<br /> National Liberal Club.<br /> VIII.—Reprints.<br /> Will some reader, well versed in the cautious ways<br /> of publishers, kindly inform me, with as little delay<br /> as possible, why it is that publishers persistently<br /> refuse to reprint books of general interest, chiefly<br /> because their original issue ran to only one<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 75 (#87) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 75<br /> edition of a limited number of copies, and was<br /> not brought well under the notice of the public?<br /> This was, at any rate, the reason given by<br /> several publishers who have had under con-<br /> sideration my book of travels in Cuba which<br /> appeared some years ago under the title of the<br /> &quot;Pearl of the Antilles.&quot; It is, I believe, the<br /> only work dealing with social life in Cuba which<br /> has been written, and it was the result of five<br /> years&#039; residence in the island; most of the time<br /> having been passed in the city of Santiago—the<br /> very centre of the pending hostilities between<br /> Spain and the United States.<br /> I was not only a resident at Santiago de Cuba,<br /> but I spent much more than a mauvais quatre<br /> d&#039;heure inside that same Morro Castle at present<br /> being bombarded by the American fleet.<br /> One would have supposed that such experiences<br /> would be of some interest to readers of to-day,<br /> and that to a large majority they would appear<br /> fresh, or as if the book had never been written;<br /> the more so because the work has long since been<br /> out of print, and forgott-n by a limited number<br /> old enough to remember it.<br /> Moreover the volume, though rather extensively<br /> noticed by the Press at the time of its publication,<br /> was never pushed by my publishers, so that the<br /> public knew next to nothing of its existence.<br /> This is another reason given by the publishers<br /> of to-day in explanation of their refusal to<br /> take up a reprint—well revised and written up<br /> to date—of the &quot;Pearl of the Antilles.&quot; They<br /> contend that if the book had been a financial<br /> success it would have run to another edition, and<br /> yet another. But they cannot be persuaded to<br /> believe that the subject of the book is of far<br /> more interest to-day than it was the other day,<br /> and that almost anything relating to Cuba just<br /> now, if well brought under the notice of the<br /> public, would perhaps receive attention.<br /> In addition to a careful revise, introducing new<br /> features, I have also offered to supply illustrations<br /> from sketches and designs in my possee-ion—<br /> some of the sketches having been done on the<br /> spot by myself. But in no single instance has<br /> any publisher &quot; caught on &quot; as yet to the idea.<br /> Walter Goodman,<br /> Oranienhof, Kreuznach, Germany.<br /> July 4, 1898. aia<br /> IX.—The Publication of Scientific Educa-<br /> tional Wokks.<br /> I should like to call your attention to a great<br /> disadvantage that the authors of scientific works<br /> that are intended for educational purposes labour<br /> under, viz., the excessive cost of advertisement.<br /> I have written three books and a large number<br /> of articles in the technical Press on the practical<br /> side of electrical engineering, that is to say, books<br /> designed for the use of mining, mechanical, and<br /> marine engineers, mechanics, plumbers, ifcc., who<br /> may have to deal with electrical apparatus but<br /> have no training, and to whom the text-books<br /> which appeal to trained electricians, crammed as<br /> they are with mathematics, would be absolutely<br /> useless.<br /> That there is a field for such books, and a large<br /> one, was proved by the fact that the first edition<br /> of my first book, consisting of 1250 copies, sold<br /> out in four months, and by the fact that this book<br /> is now w.;ll on its third edition, while the others<br /> have achieved nearly as great a success. It has<br /> also been proved in the usual way that most<br /> authors are acquainted with—I am constantly<br /> hearing of my books from all parts of the world.<br /> I have met working colliers away from their<br /> work, carrying my books in their pockets, just as<br /> one does any favourite author.<br /> I have nothing to complain of in my treatment<br /> by my publishers, except in this matter of adver-<br /> tisements. I believe that a very much larger<br /> number of my books would be sold if they were<br /> more advertised. There are probably immense<br /> numbers of mechanics, plumbers, &amp;c., to whom<br /> the books would be of immense value, by enabling<br /> them to deal themselves with most of the troubles<br /> that beset electrical apparatus, and so improve<br /> their own position and save money for then-<br /> employers. These men do not buy my books<br /> simply because they have not heard of their<br /> existence, and when I complain to my publisher<br /> they say that they cannot afford to advertise<br /> more tban they do, the cost is so great in propor-<br /> tion to the returns.<br /> But the most striking feature of the case is, my<br /> publishers assure me, that, though my first book<br /> may presumably be regarded as a success, they<br /> have only recently made anything on it; and the<br /> principal reason given is the excessive cost of<br /> advertisements, though, as I have shown, those<br /> advertisements have failed to touch the great<br /> bulk of possible purchasers.<br /> The Society of Authors has already done a<br /> great deal for authors individually and collec-<br /> tively. Could it not attack the great injustice<br /> involved in this?<br /> Take any technical paper, and consider the<br /> amount paid to the authors employed on it as<br /> against the enormous sums received for the adver-<br /> tisements. The manufacturer and the merchant<br /> have numberless ways of bringing their wares<br /> before purchasers. The author has only one—the<br /> advertisement columns of the Press, after, of<br /> course, the review—the latter only taking place on<br /> each new edition.<br /> Is it not possible to induce proprietors of<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 76 (#88) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 76<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> papers to take advertisements of books at a lower<br /> rate, to give authors a better chance of getting<br /> their works known?<br /> It is said, in reply to this, that proprietors of<br /> papers would never surrender a portion of their<br /> profits. As nothing but increased postage rate<br /> prevents proprietors of papers from increasing<br /> their advertisement sheets ad infinitum, it may<br /> fairly be doubted if this is so; but, even if it is,<br /> why should they not? Publishers pursued the<br /> same grinding policy until the advent of the<br /> Authors&#039; Society.<br /> What has been done with publishers might<br /> surely be done with the proprietors of papers.<br /> It should be remembered, too, that the authors<br /> referred to, providing they have really something<br /> to say, are doing a work of national importance.<br /> If this country is to hold its own in the com-<br /> mercial race with Germany and the United States,<br /> it can only be by the education of its artisans in<br /> the technical details of engineering apparatus,<br /> and no education can be so convenient as that<br /> which the artisan can carry in his pocket.<br /> Cardiff. Sydney F. Walker.<br /> X.—Editors and Contributors.<br /> As I have not been able to see The Author for<br /> this mouth I do not know what progress, if any,<br /> has been made with above subject, which is of even<br /> greater importance tn struggling writers than the<br /> subject of publishers&#039; extortions is to their better-<br /> to-do brethren, and which cannot be regarded<br /> as settled, on Enskin&#039;s principle that nothing is<br /> settled until it is settled rightly.<br /> The reason I am addressing you now is to give<br /> you an account of the further conduct of the<br /> editor towards me concerning whom I complained<br /> in your May impression. When my letter<br /> appeired I cut it out, together with all the other<br /> matter on the same subject. and forwarded it to<br /> the editor in question, to whom I had been con-<br /> stantly writing previously, asking him to put in<br /> what. MSS. of mine he had in hand. He returned<br /> my inclosures with the simple comment. &quot; Pray<br /> do not trouble to send such matter in future.&quot;<br /> On which I wrote him that I must have an answer<br /> as to what he intended to do in the matter of<br /> my MSS., some of which he had kept on hand<br /> upwards of twelve months. Someone on his behalf<br /> then sent me a note that the editor had gone<br /> awav for a holiday, but would answer my letter<br /> on his return. I accordingly patiently waited a<br /> month, during which nothing by me appeared in<br /> his paper, and then began to write to him again.<br /> He took no notice, despite the promise on his<br /> behalf, until last Thursday (July 14), when he<br /> sent me a letter in which he said that he had<br /> gone through all the MSS. of mine he had in<br /> hand, and found that he could use, &quot;at the first<br /> opportunity,&quot; four which he named, one of which<br /> he had already kept fourteen months, another<br /> eight months, another three months, and another<br /> nearly two years. On receiving this communica-<br /> tion I wrote expressing satisfaction that some at<br /> least of my pieces were at length going to be<br /> used, and asking that the others he had in hand<br /> should be returned, one of them a tale sent him<br /> with stamped-addressed envelope nearly two years<br /> back.<br /> Instead of complying with my request he<br /> actually sent back the four MSS. only he had<br /> just contracted to use, marked with editorial<br /> notes and corrections, and now says in answer<br /> to my appeals that he derives warrant for so<br /> doing from my letter of July 15, which I have<br /> told him he has misinteqjreted. He obstinately<br /> refuses, however, to either insert my MSS. or give<br /> me any compensation for not doing so, despite<br /> the time he has kept them.<br /> Of course I can send them elsewhere after I&#039;<br /> have re-copied them, but look at the injustice of<br /> the thing.<br /> I have written to the proprietors of the journal<br /> in question, but do not suppose I shall get any<br /> redress from them. Experto Crede.<br /> OBITUARY.<br /> MRS. ELIZABETH LYNN LINTON died<br /> on July 14, at Queen Anne&#039;s Mansions,<br /> London, where she had been staying for<br /> some time on a visit to a friend. About six<br /> weeks before she was taken ill with pleurisy; the<br /> complaint developing into double pneumonia.<br /> Mrs. Linton was in her 77th year. Born at<br /> Keswick in the days of the Lake Poets, the<br /> daughter of the Vicar of Crosthwaite, she came<br /> to London when she was twenty-three, and in the<br /> following year under the auspices of Walter<br /> Savage Landor her first book was published.<br /> This was &quot;Amymone: a Romance of the Days<br /> of Pericles.&quot; She began to write about this time<br /> for the Morning Chronicle, and subsequently for<br /> the Morning Star; and her career in journalism<br /> thus begun was continued in the Daily News,<br /> Household Words, and All the Year Round.<br /> Journalism was, indeed, her employment for a<br /> few years after 1851, the year in which &quot;Reali-<br /> ties&quot; appeared. In all, Mrs. Linton was the<br /> author of some twenty books. Her method was<br /> one. of extreme painstaking, as an instance of<br /> which it has been recorded that she re-wrote each<br /> of her long stories with her own hand thrice,<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 77 (#89) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 77<br /> making emendations each time. Distinction<br /> came to her in 1872 by her powerful novel &quot;The<br /> True History of Joseph Davidson,&quot; the hero of<br /> which is a Cornish carpenter who sets himself to<br /> live the life of Christ. &quot;Patricia Kemball,&quot;<br /> which followed after an interval of two years,<br /> had a reception only little less distinguished.<br /> The book by which she is probably best known<br /> to-day is &quot;The Girl of the Period,&quot; issued in<br /> 1883, a series of trenchant essays which had<br /> appeared in the Saturday Reriew, and which<br /> displayed Mrs. Linton in the character of a firm<br /> upholder of the sanctities of domestic life. She<br /> had no sympathy with what is commonly called<br /> the &quot;new&quot; woman—what Mrs. Linton herself<br /> called, in a series of essays upon them, the<br /> &quot;shrieking sisterhood.&quot; Miss Lynn married in<br /> 1858 Mr. William James Linton, the engraver on<br /> wood, but it was not long before Mr. and Mrs.<br /> Linton separated on account of incompatibility<br /> of temper. The husband went to America where<br /> he lived to the age of eighty. Mrs. Linton was<br /> attached to London, in which she lived for fifty<br /> years. She retired a few years ago to Malvern.<br /> One of her last visits w as to the annual dinner of<br /> the Society of Authors nine weeks before her<br /> death. Her circle of friends was very large; she<br /> was a delightful talker, a charming letter writer;<br /> a sympathetic friend to many a struggling aspi-<br /> rant in literature. The remains of the deceased<br /> lady were cremated at Woking two days after her<br /> death.<br /> QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.<br /> C^OULD any correspondent kindly tell me<br /> j where &quot;Is the Church of England worth<br /> preserving?&quot; an article by the late Mr.<br /> Gladstone, which appeared some fifteen years<br /> ago, I think, can be found? Also, what is the<br /> reference to an article on Corporate Reunion of<br /> the Church of England with the Church of Rome,<br /> by some Anglican dignitary, giving, I believe, an<br /> account of the consecration of three Anglican<br /> clergymen by Roman Catholic bishops r<br /> Spes.<br /> BOOK TALK.<br /> MR. F. J. JACKSON&#039;S record of the<br /> recent Jackson-Harmsworth expedition<br /> to the polar regions will be published by<br /> Messrs. Harper in the autumn, in two volumes.<br /> A facsimile of the famous Rhind mathematical<br /> papyrus will be issued shortly by the British<br /> Museum. The papyrus deals with such subjects<br /> as the elements of geometrv and the theory of<br /> fractions, and was prepare! for publication by<br /> the late Dr. Samuel Birch several years ago. It<br /> has since been revised, and a special introduction<br /> has been written for it by Dr. Budge.<br /> &quot;Practical Letters to Young Sea-fishers&quot; is<br /> the title of a new book by Mr. John Bickerdyke,<br /> which Mr. Horace Cox, publisher of the Field,<br /> announces. In addition to sea-fishing as a sport,<br /> it deals with fishing-boats, boat-sailing, and life-<br /> saving at sea, and the restoration of the half<br /> drowned. The book is very fully illustrated by<br /> photographs of sea-fishing scenes taken by the<br /> author, sea-fishes drawn by a noted ichthyologist,<br /> the late Dr. Day, and the usual diagrams of<br /> tackle.<br /> Mr. Jerome K. Jerome&#039;s new book, a second<br /> series of &quot;Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow,&quot; will<br /> be published in a few days by Messrs. Hurst<br /> and Blackett, entitled &quot;Second Thoughts of an<br /> Idle Fellow.&quot; The first series appeared twelve<br /> years ago.<br /> Early in the autumn season a memoir of<br /> Robert, Earl Nugent, the contemporary and<br /> friend of Pitt, Chesterfield, and Walpole,<br /> will be published by Mr. Heinemann. The<br /> writer is a member of the family, Mr. Claude<br /> Nugent, and a great amount of the earl&#039;s<br /> correspondence will be given, as well as illus-<br /> trations from pictures by Gainsborough, Reynolds,<br /> and Kneller.<br /> Miss Nellie Farren is writing the storv of her<br /> life.<br /> Readers will remember the process of unautho-<br /> rised adaptation which a story by Mr. H. G.<br /> Wells recently underwent in order to suit a<br /> locality in the United States. Now it appears that<br /> somewhat similar treatment has been received by<br /> another English author, namely, Mr. H. O. Arnold<br /> Forster, M.P. His little book, &quot;In a Conning<br /> Tower,&quot; which has gone through many editions,<br /> has been taken in hand by an &quot;enterprising&quot;<br /> firm in America. The narrative describes the<br /> possible course of an action between two modern<br /> British ironclads. In the American adaptation,<br /> names of American battleships are substituted,<br /> and the work is described as &quot;by a noted<br /> expert.&quot;<br /> Mr. Henry James&#039;s new novel, &quot; In the Cage,&quot;<br /> will appear from Messrs. Duckworth&#039;s in a few-<br /> days.<br /> Mr. E. F. Benson has written a society story,<br /> entitled &quot;The Money Market,&quot; which will be<br /> Arrowsmith&#039;s Christmas Annual this year.<br /> Mr. J. K. Laughton is making steady progress<br /> with the life of the late Mr. Henry Reeve, the<br /> editor of the Edinburgh Review, which will pro-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 78 (#90) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 78<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> bably be among the most important of this year&#039;s<br /> biographies. It will contain some vers-de-sodet6<br /> written by Mr. Reeve in early life.<br /> Mr. Demetrius Boulger, whose large history of<br /> China has just been issu d in a cheaper edition,<br /> has examined the documents of the Congo State<br /> and the work carried on there, and the result will<br /> be a book entitled &quot;The Congo State and the<br /> Growth of Civilisation in Central Africa.&quot; It<br /> will be published by Messrs. Thacker in the<br /> autumn.<br /> A volume that will be anticipated with much<br /> ioterest is &quot; Letters by Benjamin Jowett,&quot; which<br /> Mr. Evelyn Abbott and Professor Lewis Campbell<br /> are preparing as a supplement to their &quot; Life of<br /> the late Master of Balliol,&quot; which was issued by<br /> Mr. Murray last year.<br /> Mr. Clark Russell&#039;s new novel, &quot; The Romance<br /> of a Midshipman,&quot; will be published on Oct. 5<br /> by Mr. Unwin.<br /> A romance of lower London, by Mr. A. St. John<br /> Adcock, will be published shortly by Messrs.<br /> Skeffington.<br /> General McLeod Innes is writing the life of<br /> another gallant soldier, namely, the late General<br /> Sir Henry Havelock-Allan.<br /> Novels to be published in the autumn by Messrs<br /> Constable include &quot; An Elusive Lover,&quot; by Virna<br /> Woods; &quot;A Statesman&#039;s Chance,&quot; by Mr. J. F.<br /> Charles; and &quot;The Modern Gospel,&quot; by Mrs.<br /> H. H. Penrose.<br /> With the July number of the Classical Review<br /> Mr. G. E. Marindin relinquished the post of<br /> editor, owing to pressure of other work. Dr.<br /> Postgate, of Cambridge, has accepted the editor-<br /> ship, and he will be assisted by Mr. A. Bernard<br /> Cook, of Trinity College, Cambridge. Mr.<br /> Marindin has edited the review for five years,<br /> having succeeded Professor Mayor.<br /> Mr. Walter Armstrong, Director of the National<br /> Gallery of Ireland, is writing a book on the<br /> characteristics an &lt; achievements of the painter<br /> Gainsborough, which will be published by Mr.<br /> Heinemann.<br /> Lord Ashbourne is writing a work entitled<br /> &quot;Pitt: Some Chapters of his Life and 1 imes,&quot;<br /> which Messrs. Longman will issue in the<br /> autumn.<br /> &quot;Foreign Courts and Foreign Homes &quot; is the<br /> title of a work by &quot;A. M. F.&quot; which is shortly to<br /> be published by Messrs. Longman. It deals<br /> with Hanoverian and French society under King<br /> Ernest and the Emperor Napoleon III., and<br /> contains a fund of anecdote.<br /> Mr. W. G. Collingwood is being assisted by<br /> Professor Jon Stefansson, of Copenhagen Univer-<br /> sity, the well-known Icelander, in preparing an<br /> elaborate volume on the topography and scenery<br /> of the Sagas, so far as they relate to Iceland.<br /> It will be illustrated by 200 water-colour drawings<br /> taken by Mr. Collingwood last year in the Faroe<br /> Islands, Iceland, and the Northern Seas.<br /> Professor Murison is writing the volume on Sir<br /> William Wallace for the Famous Scots Series.<br /> July witnessed the appearance of a threepenny<br /> popular monthly, entitled the Harmsworth Maga-<br /> zine. It is published by the well-known firm of<br /> Harmsworth. Considerable discussion has arisen<br /> upon the question of whether the newsagents can<br /> afford to sell it at the price it is offered to them.<br /> Messrs. W. H. Smith and Son declined to sell it<br /> on their bookstalls, and there has been a lengthy<br /> altercation between the two firms on this score.<br /> Mr. Harmsworth, the principal of the firm, says<br /> that the magazine can only be produced at the<br /> price becatise it is but &quot;a small incident in an<br /> organisation controlling four daily journals and<br /> nearly thirty weekly periodicals; because we<br /> already possess and are now building printing<br /> machinery of an entirely novel and labour-saving<br /> nature.&quot;<br /> The following are among the novels which are<br /> announced for early publication: &quot;God&#039;s Out-<br /> cast,&quot; by Mr. Silas K. Hocking (Warne); &quot;A<br /> Girl of Grit,&quot; by Major Arthur Griffiths (Milne J;<br /> a novel by Mr. J. A. Barry (Macqueen); &quot;A<br /> Lotus Flower,&quot; by Mr. J. Morgan de Groo<br /> (Blackwood); &quot;The Secret of the King,&quot; by Mr.<br /> Charles Hannan; &quot;The Pathway of the Gods,&quot;<br /> by Mrs. Mona Caird; •&#039; The Laurel Walk,&quot; by<br /> Mrs. Molesworth (Isbister); and &quot;The Queen&#039;s<br /> Cup,&quot; by Mr. G. A. Henty.&quot;<br /> &quot;The Ways of a Widow,&quot; by Mrs. Lovett<br /> Cameron; and &quot;Heart and Sword,&quot; by John<br /> Strange Winter, will be published by Messrs.<br /> White, who also have in preparation new stories<br /> by Mrs. Alexander and Miss Florence Warden.<br /> The Rev. Arthur Jenkinson, minister of the<br /> parish of Innellan, Argyllshire, has written a<br /> novel, in collaboration with his daughter, the<br /> scenes of which are laid in some of the wildest<br /> parts of the West Highlands. The story is<br /> entitled &quot;Fiona Mclver: A Romance of the<br /> Western Isles,&quot; and will be published immediately<br /> by Messrs. Hutchinson and Co. Miss Jeukinson,<br /> who is still very young, has already accomplished<br /> a considerable amount of literary work.<br /> The executive committee of the Stevenson<br /> Memorial now report that a fund of about .£1400<br /> has been raited through local committees in New<br /> Zealand, the United States, London, Liverpool,<br /> Manchester, Oxford, Cambridge, Edinburgh,<br /> Glasgow, Dundee, and Aberdeen. A mural<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 79 (#91) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 79<br /> monument in bronze will be placed in the Moray<br /> Aisle of St. Giles&#039;s Cathedral, Edinburgh. It wiil<br /> be done by Mr. St. Gaudens, the American<br /> sculptor, who has studied Stevenson from the life.<br /> If the funds permit, it is also proposed to erect a<br /> handsome red granite seat upon some point on<br /> the Calton Hill, overlooking the Firth of Forth.<br /> Miss E. M. Cope is translating from the Nor-<br /> wegian a personal life of Marie Antoinette,<br /> written by Miss Clara Tschudi, who was recently<br /> presented by King Oscar with a gold medal in<br /> recognition of her historical researches. Messrs.<br /> Swan Sonnenschein and Co. will publish the<br /> book.<br /> Dr. Joseph Parker, of the City Temple, is<br /> writing a review of his Lifetime amongst the<br /> Dissenters, which will probably appear in the<br /> autumn. The proposed title of the book is<br /> &quot;Paterson&#039;s Parish: A Book of Scenes, Thoughts,<br /> Dialogues, and Revelations.&quot; No publisher has<br /> yet been named.<br /> &quot;Estrina,&quot; written by C. H. Malcolm, has just<br /> been published by Simpkin, Marshall, and Co.<br /> (2*. 6d.).<br /> A play entitled &quot;Edgar Harissue,&quot; by Messrs.<br /> C. H. Malcolm and Arthur Grahame, was played<br /> at the Ladbroke Hall on Tuesday, July 19, and<br /> was much appreciated.<br /> THE BOOKS OF THE MONTH.<br /> [June 24 to July 23.—217 Books.]<br /> Ames, J. S. Theory of Physics. 10/- Harper.<br /> Ames. J. S. and Bliss, W. J. A. A Manual of Experiments in Physics.<br /> 10/- Harper.<br /> Anderson, P. J Records of Marischal College and University,<br /> Aberdeen. 1593-1840. 21/- New Spalding Club.<br /> Andom, B Martha and I 3/6 Jarrold.<br /> Andrews, S. J. Christianity and Anti-Christianity in their Final<br /> Conflict. 9/- Putnam.<br /> Andrews, W. Literary Bywavs. 7/6. Andrews.<br /> Anonymous (An Inspector of Schools). Principles of Arithmetic.<br /> 3 6. McDougall.<br /> Anonymous. Conquest of Constantinople hy the Crusaders: A Song<br /> of Israel and Other Poems. 2/6 net. Paul.<br /> Anonymous (B. L. L.) Doctrine of Energy. 2/6 net. Paul.<br /> Anonymous. An Indictment of the Bishops. 1/- Church Association.<br /> Anonymous. History as Taught in India. 1/- T. G. Johnson.<br /> Armstrong, A. Tales of the Temple and Elsewhere. 1/-<br /> St. Sames&#039;s Gazette Office.<br /> Bailey, G. H. Metals and their Compounds. Part I. 1/6. Clive.<br /> Baskett, J. N. At You-alTs House. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Raynee. Herbert. Ideals of the East. 5/- Sonnenschein.<br /> Relfort, Roland. The Colonial Cable Peril. 1/- R. Belfort.<br /> Bell. R S W. The Pupa Papers, and Some Stories. 2 - Richards.<br /> Blake, A. H. Photography. Simple Chapters for Beginners. 1-<br /> Routledge.<br /> Bland. E. A. Alice Courtenay&#039;s Legacy. 1/- Stoneman.<br /> Roas. F. The Social Organisation and the Secret Societies of the<br /> Ka aklutl Indians. 12/- net. Wesley.<br /> Booth, J. L. O. Sporting Rhymes and Pictures. 3/6. Paul.<br /> Brebner, Mary. Method of Teaching Modern Languages in<br /> Germany. 1/6. Clay.<br /> Bridges, G. J. Imaginations in Verse. I/- Exeter: Pollard.<br /> Briggs, W. and Stewart, R. W. Chemical Analysis. 3/6. Clive.<br /> Brodie, S. Poetical Stories. 3/6 net. Digby.<br /> brown, J. D. Library C&#039;assiflcation and Shelf Arrangement. 4 -<br /> net. Library Supply Co.<br /> Brnnker, H. M. S. Memoranda and Formula): Fortification aud<br /> Topography. 3/- Th acker.<br /> Bullock, C. William Ewart Gladstone: a non-political Tribute, ij.<br /> Horn? Word**<br /> Campin, F. Iron and Steel Bridges and Viaducts. 3 6 Lockwood.<br /> Carrlngton, Henry The Siren. 3/6. Stock.<br /> Chipp, H. Lawn Tennis Recollections 2/- Merritt an I Ha&#039;cher.<br /> Clarke, h. H. The Shipping Ring and South Africtn Trade I -<br /> Ward and Lock.<br /> Clarke, Henry. Billy: and other Sketches. 3/6. Simpkin<br /> Cleevrf, L. The Monks of the Holy Tear. 6/- White.<br /> Coleridge, ChrisUbel. The Thought-Rope. 1/- Hurst.<br /> Coleridge, E. H. Poems. 3/6. net. L*ne.<br /> Oollinson&#039;s History of Somerset, Index to, edited by F. W. Weaver<br /> and E. H. Bates. 20/- net Taunton: Barnicott and Pearce.<br /> Oolquhoun. A. R. Chin* in Transformation. 16/- Harper.<br /> Colton, B. H. Physiology, Experimental and Descriptive. 6,&#039;-<br /> ScientifiY Press.<br /> Courtois, R. Christ&#039;s Teaching and our Religious Divisions. 1/6-<br /> Art and Book do.<br /> Crompton, A. (tr.). One Hundred Sonnets of Petrarch, together with<br /> his Hymn to the Virgin Italian Text, with an English trans-<br /> lation. 5/- net. Paul.<br /> Cross, F. W. History of the Walloon and Huguenot Church at<br /> Canterbury. Prlv-tely printed for the Huguenot Society.<br /> Crouch, A. P. For the Rebel Cause. 3/6. Ward and L.<br /> Cushing, P. The Shepherdess of Treva. A novel, &#039;6 - Thacker.<br /> Cuthbertson, W. (ed.). Pansies, Violas, and Violets. 1/6.<br /> Cripps, H. Ovariotomy and Abdominal Surgery. 2&quot;, -<br /> Dall, G. (tr. by Sarah Cazaly) Christine Myriane. 6/-<br /> D&#039;Arcy, Ella. Modern Instances. 3/6.<br /> Davey, Richard Cuba, Past and Present. 12 -<br /> Davies, H. The Cerebellum. 2/6.<br /> Davis. A. Umbandine: A Romance of Swaziland. i;.-<br /> Day, Thomas Fleming. Songs of Se* and Sail. Yachtsman Office.<br /> Douglas, W. S. Cromwell&#039;s Scotch Campaigns, 1650-51. 10,6.<br /> Stock.<br /> By Shamrock and Heather. 6, -<br /> , and White, H. A. (trs.). Levi tic u<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Churchill.<br /> Digby<br /> Lane*<br /> Chapman<br /> Nichols,<br /> On win.<br /> Digby.<br /> (Polvchrome<br /> Clarke.<br /> Simpkin.<br /> E. Wilson.<br /> Low.<br /> Obfatto,<br /> 1 - net.<br /> Downe. W.<br /> Driver. 8. R..<br /> Bible.)<br /> Dutt, W. A. By Sea Marge, Marsh, and Mere.<br /> Easton, H. T. The Work of a Bank. 2 net.<br /> Ebers, G. (tr. by Mary J Safford). Arachne. 6 -<br /> Edwards, G. S. Snazellepirilla. 3/6.<br /> Edwards, R. Mechanical Engineer&#039;s Handy Office Compinion.<br /> Lockwood.<br /> Ellice, E. C. Place Names in Glengarry and Glenquoich. 2/6.<br /> Sonnenschein<br /> Ellison, M. A. A Manual for Students of Massage 3/6 net.<br /> Builliere,<br /> Escott, T. H. S. Personal Forces of the Period. 6,- Hurst.<br /> Eyton, Canon. The Heritage of a Great Life [Gladstone&#039;s]. 1- Paul.<br /> Ferguson, Robert. Dulcissima! Dilectissima! Stock.<br /> Filon, A. (tr. by J. E. Hogarth). The Moder n French Drama. 7/6.<br /> Chapman.<br /> Flint, G, Marching with Gomez. 6/- net. iJay.<br /> Fryer, A. Potamogetons (Pond Weeds) of the British Isles. Parts<br /> 1-3 21/- net. L. Reeve.<br /> Gairdner, J. Richard the Third Revised edition. 8 6. Clay.<br /> Garland, Hamlin. Jason Edwards and A Little Norsk. 6 - Thacker.<br /> Gautier, T. (tr. by E. M Beam). Captain Fracasse. 5/- Duckworth,<br /> Gay, Mgr. C. (tr. by O. S. B ). The Roligious Life and the Vowb. .,,-<br /> Burns and O.<br /> George, G. Practical Organic Chemistry. 1/6. Cllve.<br /> George, L. F. Falling Prices and the Remedy. 5/- Gay.<br /> Gibhins, H. de B. The English People in the Nineteenth Century 2 -<br /> Black.<br /> Gibbs, W. E. Lighting by Acetylene. 7/6. Lockwood.<br /> Gilchrist, R. Murray. Willowbrake. 6/- Methuen.<br /> Gillette, C. P. American Leaf-Hoppers of the Sub-family Typhlo-<br /> cyblna. 3/- net. Wesley.<br /> Gingold, H., and Hardy, B. Financial Sketches. 1 - net.<br /> Columbus Printing Co.<br /> Giveen, H. M. The Law relating to Commission Agents<br /> 2/6.<br /> C. Wilson.<br /> Nutt.<br /> Routledge<br /> Longman<br /> Heinemann<br /> Gollancz, Israel (ed.). Hamlet in Iceland. 15/- net.<br /> Gould, N. Landed at Last. 2/6.<br /> Granby, Marquis of. The Trout. 5/-<br /> Gray, Maxwell. The House of Hidden Treasure. 6<br /> Grenfell, B. P., and Hunt, A. S. (eds.). The Oxyrhynchus Papyr<br /> Part I. 25/- Egypt Exploration Fund<br /> Groos, K. (tr. by E. L. Baldwin). The Play of Animals. 10/6.<br /> Chapman<br /> Guyau, M. (tr. by G. Kapteyn). A Sketch of Morality. 3 6. Watts<br /> Hamblen, H. E. The General Manager&#039;s Story. 6 - Macmillan.<br /> Harnack, A. (tr. by E. B. Spiers and J. Millar). History of Dogma.<br /> Vol. 4. 10/6. Williams and N.<br /> Harris, J. H. Esther&#039;s Pilgrimage: New Not?a on Old Strings. 6<br /> Macqueen.<br /> Harrison, H. The Place-Names of the Liverpool District. 5 - Stock.<br /> Hart, A. B. (ed.). American History told by Contemporaries. Vol. 2.<br /> 8/6 net. Macmillan.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 80 (#92) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 8o THE AUTHOR.<br /> Hartley, M. Titles and Sketches of the Welsh Border. 1/-<br /> Marshall and Russell.<br /> Hatzfeld. Ad. (tr. by E. Holt. Saint xVugnstine 3/- Duckworth.<br /> Hereford. Bishop of. The Present State of the Church. 1/- Bivington.<br /> Hillary, Max. The Blue Flag. 6/- Ward and L.<br /> Hillier, G. Laey. Wrinkles for Cyclists. 1/- Newnes.<br /> Hodgson, R. LI. On Plain and Peak 7/6. Constable.<br /> Hodgson. S. H. The Metaphysic of Expeiience. 36/- net. Longman.<br /> Hoffman. W, J. The Graphic An of the Eskimos. 12&#039;- net.<br /> Wesley.<br /> Holden, E. S. Catalogue of Earthquakes on Pacific Coast, 1769-18!t7.<br /> 3/6 net Wesley.<br /> Holland, C. The Use of the Hand Camera. 2/6. Constable.<br /> Holland, C, Compulsory Colic for Board Schools. 1/- P. S. King.<br /> Holland, Hon. Lionel. Suggestions for Scheme of Old Age Pensions.<br /> 1/6. Arnold.<br /> Hollirgshead. John. Gaiety Chronicles. 21/- Constable.<br /> Holmt&#039;s, T. Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie. 3/6. Unwin.<br /> Howard, F. J., and Crisp, F. A. (eds ) Visitation of Ireland. Vol. 2.<br /> Privately printed.<br /> Howaoh, E. W., and Warner, G. T. (eds.) Harrow School. 21/- net.<br /> Arnold.<br /> Ireland, W. W. The Mental Affections of Children. 18/-<br /> Cburchlll.<br /> Jakob, Dr. C. (tr. from German by A. A. Eshner). Atlas of<br /> Methods and of Special Pathology. Ac., of Internal Diseases.<br /> 12,6 net. Rebman.<br /> Janvier, T. A. In the Sargasso Sea. A Novel. 6/- Harper.<br /> Johnson, W. K. Terra Tenebrarnm, Love&#039;s Jest Book, and Other<br /> Verses. 5/- net. Paul.<br /> Jbly, H. The Psychology of the Saints. 3/- Duckworth.<br /> Kendrick, A. F. History and Description of Lincoln Cathedral. 1/6.<br /> Bell.<br /> King, L. W. First Steps in Assyrian. 15/- net. Paul.<br /> Koerner H. T. Beleaguered. 6/- Putnam.<br /> Lambert, F. C. Mounts and Frames, and how to make them. I -<br /> Lawson, H. Notes of Decisions under the Representation of the<br /> People Acts and the Registration Act 1897. 4/6. Stevens.<br /> Lawson, R. Famous Places of England. 1/- Paisley: Parlane.<br /> Lee. R. W. The Social Compact. 2/6. Simpkio.<br /> Lee, S. (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 55. U, - net.<br /> Smith and E,<br /> Lc Harivel, 0. S. The Principles of French Grammar. 2, 6. Oliver<br /> and Boyd.<br /> Leslie, Major J. H. History of Landguard Fort. 12/- Eyre and S.<br /> Longstaff, Mrs. Poems, 1894-98. Stanford.<br /> Lord. R. T. A Practical Book on Decorative and Fancy Textile<br /> Fabric. 10/6. Scott, Greenwood, and Co.<br /> I owrey, Oliver. The Runaway Couple. Neeley.<br /> McDonnell, R. Kathleen Mavourneen. 6/- Unwin.<br /> McKillop, J., M.P. Thoughts for the People. Stirling: Journal ami<br /> Advertiser Office.<br /> Malcolm. C. H. Estrina. 2/6. Simpkin.<br /> Marsh, F. E. Christ&#039;s Atonement. 1,6. Marshall Bros.<br /> Marshall, T. P. Short Historical Sketch of English Literature. I/-<br /> Simpkin.<br /> Maxwell, W. H. The Removal and Disposal of Town Refuse. 15/-<br /> net. Sanitary Publishing Co.<br /> Melrose, A. Mr. Gladstone. A Popular Biography. 3/6. 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320	https://historysoa.com/items/show/320	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 04 (September 1898)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+04+%28September+1898%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 04 (September 1898)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1898-09-01-The-Author-9-4					81–100																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1898-09-01">1898-09-01</a>							4			18980901	XL he Hutbor,<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.&#039;)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. 4.] SEPTEMBER 1, 1898. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only.<br /> Commnnioations and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOB some years it has been the praotioe to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notioes, &amp;o., for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to carry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> TOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5-) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> HI. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, whieh has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both rides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Headers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objeoted that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those aooount books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> i 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 82 (#94) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 82 THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> I. INVERT member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> IU advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advice<br /> sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with oopyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudnlent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the oountry.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that yon may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreement and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Society now offera:—(1)<br /> To read and advise npon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action npon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21 st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> communioate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously<br /> oommunioating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, Ac.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanoed 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clanse was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correct: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amonnt charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of course, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of frand; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6s. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> The Editor is always glad to reoeive short papers and<br /> communications on all subjects connected with literature<br /> from members and others. Nothing oan do more good to<br /> the Sooiety than to make The Author complete, attractive,<br /> and interesting. Will those who are willing to aid in this<br /> work send their names and the special subjects on which<br /> they are willing to write?<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I.—The Publishers&#039; Draft Agreements.<br /> fT^HE following expressions of opinion are<br /> S from various sources, in writing and com-<br /> municated by word of mouth, abridged<br /> and in full. I venture to invite the judgment of<br /> all our readers upon these model agreements, but<br /> put as briefly as possible. So far there has been<br /> complete unanimity of condemnation: with some<br /> there has been astonishment, and even a kind of<br /> dismay, at the discovery that nothing ever<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 83 (#95) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 83<br /> advanced in The Author or in the papers pub-<br /> lished by the Society has fallen so far short of<br /> the real truth. An opinion signed has, of course,<br /> far more weight than one that is anonymous.<br /> 1.<br /> I entirely agree with you as to the gross<br /> unfairness of the terms which you comment on<br /> in The Author as being those indorsed by the<br /> Publishers&#039; Association. Only a very weak vessel<br /> could possibly be induced to subscribe them, but<br /> then the raison d&#039;etre of our Society is precisely<br /> that this weaker vessel should be strengthened.<br /> That any author should give away his Tauch-<br /> nitz rights, American rights, and dramatic rights,<br /> in this wholesale way seems inconceivable, but I<br /> should have thought it equally inconceivable that<br /> any honourable body of men should have asked<br /> for such a sacrifice. If in the face of your<br /> exposure any author signs such terms, then he<br /> deserves his fate. A. Conan Doyle.<br /> TJndershaw, Hindhead, Haslemere.<br /> 11.<br /> I desire to call renewed attention, in addition to<br /> the points already raised, to a view of the subject<br /> that has not been received with the consideration<br /> which it deserves. It is this. The relations of<br /> author and publisher have been discussed<br /> repeatedly for the last fifteen years. During<br /> that time the position of the author and his<br /> extremely modest claims have been stated and<br /> re-stated over and over again. The latter simply<br /> ask for the same safeguards as exist in all other<br /> kinds of partnership, and it has been urged over<br /> and over again—(1) that the property belongs<br /> ,originally to the author: (2) that he has a right<br /> to know what any proposed agreement, except<br /> that for sale outright, means for either side: and<br /> (3) that on any form of profit-sharing agree-<br /> ment, including royalty, an audit of the books<br /> must be open to the author. Of course, as a<br /> matter of fact, it is open by common law, but<br /> this fact is studiously concealed.<br /> Now, not one of these claims is even noticed.<br /> What does this mean? It may mean (1) a resolu-<br /> tion to keep silence unless they are forced to<br /> speak: or (2) an impudent refusal to answer, or<br /> even to consider, the claims of an author: or (3)<br /> a real belief that the whole administration of<br /> literary property belongs to them as a right,<br /> and that they mean to do just what they please<br /> with it.<br /> But can they believe in this monstrous preten-<br /> sion? Can they really think that another man&#039;s<br /> property is to be treated exactly as they please<br /> for their own profit? Why — what is the<br /> present position? It is notorious that not<br /> a single author of any position in the literary<br /> world—not one—would consent to sign an agree-<br /> ment on these terms, so humorously styled<br /> &quot;equitable&quot;! This they must know perfectly<br /> well: they cannot choose but know it. No<br /> literary agent would dare to consent to such terms,<br /> not one: not even one who sells his clients to the<br /> publishers, would dare to accept such an agree-<br /> ment. Now since the publication of the meaning<br /> of the Cost of Production and the actual trade<br /> prices, the pecuniary position of the author has<br /> doubled in value. Yet our friends actually<br /> believe that we are going to sacrifice all the<br /> advance we have made, and to accept terms far<br /> more degrading to the author than ever were<br /> offered at any period, even the worst and lowest,<br /> in the history of literary folk. A.<br /> in.<br /> These terms by which publishers declare that<br /> it is &quot; equitable &quot; for them to have the power of<br /> pocketing as much of the profits as they please<br /> are the work of a committee which numbers on its<br /> body two names which have hitherto commanded<br /> general respect. I submit that Messrs. Long-<br /> man and Murray owe it to their historical<br /> and hereditary position as publishers to explain<br /> how they defend these claims, and to show<br /> what services they render to a book which can<br /> possibly entitle them to load the returns with<br /> percentages of whatever they please on every<br /> single item either of cost or of sale. They<br /> should also explain (1) why they leave themselves<br /> the right of charging for advertisements not paid<br /> for: (2) why they ignore the common law right<br /> of everybody to audit the accounts of his own<br /> property; and (3) why they claim office expenses<br /> for themselves which they deny to the bookseller<br /> and the author. B.<br /> IV.<br /> I beg to express the hope that the Society of<br /> Authors will not be drawn into the snare of<br /> arbitrating or submitting these questions to any<br /> form of argument. Arbitration means concession.<br /> Here there must be no concession. They are<br /> against the whole principles of the Society as<br /> set forth from the beginning. The only course, I<br /> submit, for the Society to follow is to reply by<br /> tearing up the documents and refusing even to<br /> argue upon them. C.<br /> v.<br /> I venture to hope that the question of office<br /> expenses will not be lost sight of. An agreement<br /> which claims for the publisher an allowance for<br /> office expenses which it does not allow the book-<br /> seller or the author is simply preposterous. The<br /> office expenses of the former are a great deal<br /> heavier in proportion than that of the publisher,<br /> while the author has office expenses sometimes<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 84 (#96) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 84<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> of a very heavy nature, especially in copying or<br /> typewriting work. D.<br /> VI.<br /> Has not the time come when the stronger<br /> writers should make a stand and insist on the<br /> insertion of certain clauses? For instance, the<br /> unpaid advertisements and the &quot;exchanges &quot;:<br /> the clause providing for an audit: the clause<br /> about office expenses. These should all be pro-<br /> vided for. It would surely be perfectly easy for<br /> the author to give instructions as to these points.<br /> There would not be the least difficulty in obtain-<br /> ing the concessions at once. I would suggest<br /> that the author should be provided with such an<br /> agreement by the Secretary, or that the literary<br /> agent should be instructed by the author to<br /> present an agreement in which such clauses and<br /> others should be inserted.<br /> The following seem to me the most im-<br /> portant:<br /> (i.) The right of audit must not be left to a<br /> common law right, but must be actually<br /> inserted in the agreement and acted<br /> upon.<br /> (2.) The advertisement plunder must be<br /> definitively stopped.<br /> (3.) Office expenses must be allowed, if at all,<br /> then for all parties concerned—say 2^<br /> per cent. to author, publisher, and book-<br /> seller. Of course this allowance may not<br /> pay the office expenses, especially of the<br /> author. But the allowance will at least<br /> recognise them.<br /> (4.) The author if he pleases may have a veto<br /> on the papers used for advertising in.<br /> (5.) No percentages at all to be charged upon<br /> anything. And any discounts allowed<br /> must be entered in the accounts.<br /> Do you think that the publisher will refuse<br /> these terms to an author of repute &#039;i If so, let<br /> the author come to me, and I think I can show<br /> him a better way. E.<br /> VII.<br /> It is greatly to. be hoped that the publication<br /> of these agreements may hurry up the inevitable,<br /> namely, that publishing must become a business<br /> conducted on the same terms as all others: that<br /> of competition. So long as money is to be made<br /> out of selling the works of an author, people will<br /> be found to compete for his work, and to make,<br /> if they can, their own terms, screwing out of him<br /> as much work for as little pay as possible, and<br /> screwing out of the bookseller as much money<br /> as they can. This has always been going on<br /> under various pretences: risk, to begin with:<br /> friendship: bad times: awful expenses of pro-<br /> duction—we know the rest. Now that we know<br /> what these things really mean, we ought to be<br /> able to fight our battles for ourselves. But since<br /> authors are not great at conducting their own<br /> affairs, we have to call in an agent whose neart<br /> should be like the nether millstone for hardness.<br /> He will not drink champagne: he will not weep<br /> over bad times: he smiles at the &quot; heavy cost:<br /> he will not admit the risk: he is inflexible about<br /> office expenses: and will not admit of friendship<br /> in business. The ways of business for all others<br /> are hard: the publishers for too many years have<br /> made their ways easy and tender for themselves.<br /> They are now entering upon paths that are gritty<br /> and ways that are thorny, like other men who buy<br /> and sell. F.<br /> II.—The Country Bookseller.<br /> Being away from home, and alone in a large<br /> provincial town of 140,000 people, I wanted<br /> something to read. I went out to look for a<br /> bookseller&#039;s shop, and tramped through the prin-<br /> cipal streets in search. I had almost given up<br /> my quest when I found one, and entered.<br /> &quot;I think you must be the only bookseller in the<br /> town,&quot; said I.<br /> &quot;I am the only real bookseller. There is one<br /> other, but he goes in for photographs, painted<br /> tambourines, and such like, as well as books.&quot;<br /> &quot;Do you really mean to say that one bookseller<br /> is enough for the wants of a town of a hundred<br /> and forty thousand inhabitants?&quot; I asked,<br /> astounded.<br /> &quot;Yes, sir. That is the sad fact.&quot;<br /> &quot;But even you are not what I call a bookseller.<br /> Where are the novels of the day?&quot;<br /> He took me outside, and pointed proudly to a<br /> six-shilling book.<br /> &quot;There is the novel of the hour,&quot; he said. And<br /> sure enough, in company with perhaps two dozen<br /> others, was the book; its name I will not<br /> mention.<br /> &quot;Have you got ?&quot; I asked.<br /> &quot;No, sir, I&#039;m afraid not.&quot;<br /> I had asked for a book which last year ran into,<br /> I think, 50,000 copies. No; with the exception<br /> of the few books in his window he had no other<br /> new literature.<br /> &quot;I suppose,&quot; I said, &quot;that the big draper up<br /> the street who is selling cheap reprints at four-<br /> pence ha&#039;penny spoils your trade?<br /> &quot;Not a bit, he answered. &quot;The call for that<br /> stuff is going off; in fact, some of them can&#039;t sell<br /> the stock they&#039;ve got.&quot;<br /> &quot;Then do you sell many copies of six-shilling<br /> books?&quot;<br /> &quot;Well, no; unless there is a great talk of a<br /> book we sell very few. The price will have to<br /> come down to three shillings, and I think that<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 85 (#97) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 85<br /> will kill the libraries. They are the things that<br /> stop the sale of new books.&quot;<br /> I chose a cheap reprint, and went out to think<br /> over what I had seen and heard.<br /> A large and important provincial town, known<br /> the world over, with but one bond fide book-<br /> seller! One to 140,000!<br /> Under such circumstances, how is the unknown<br /> author to have a fair chance? Alan Oscar.<br /> III.—The Publishing Trade in Germany.<br /> Exclusive of specialist publications, 3477<br /> political and advertising papers were issued in<br /> 1752 German centres last year, being at the rate<br /> of one per 12,092 inhabitants, or per 157 square<br /> kilometres, In Switzerland the proportion is one<br /> to 7581 inhabitants, or 107 square kilometres,<br /> while in Austria the corresponding figures are<br /> 72,290 and 1167. This is, no doubt, a conse-<br /> quence of the different legislation in these<br /> countries. Austria still retains the newspaper<br /> stamp. Germany has nine papers that appear<br /> more than twice daily, and 79 that appear twelve<br /> to thirteen times a week, 1185 six to seven times,<br /> and 1745 two to five times. The number of<br /> specialist publications is 3056.<br /> The export trade in German books amounted<br /> in 1896 to the value of about 62 million marks,<br /> and the import of foreign books to 20 millions.<br /> Austria-Hungary bought 28 million marks&#039; worth,<br /> Switzerland (in millions 0f marks) 7.6, the United<br /> States 7.2, Russia 5.8, England 3.2, Holland 2.8,<br /> France 2, Belgium and Scandinavia 1.2, and Italy<br /> and Denmark 800,000 marks&#039; worth. From<br /> Austria-Hungary Germany imported 7.2 million<br /> marks&#039; worth of b0oks; from Switzerland, 3.2;<br /> from France, 3.8; from Holland and the United<br /> States, 1.6; from Russia, more than 700,000<br /> marks&#039; worth; and from England, 650,000 marks&#039;<br /> worth. The small value of the books imported<br /> from England is evidently due t0 the fact that<br /> Tauchnitz and other German firms publish<br /> enormous numbers of English works.—Standard.<br /> IV.—The Internationale Liteea.<br /> TUEBEEICHTE.<br /> Those members of the Society of Authors who<br /> read German may be glad to be made acquainted<br /> with the fortnightly Internationale Litera-<br /> turberichte (Leipzig, Grimmaischer Steinweg,<br /> No. 2 ; quarterly subscription, 1.75 marks, annual<br /> ditto, including postage to England, 7.50 marks),<br /> the official organ of the &quot; Deutscher Sehriftsteller-<br /> Verband,&quot; &quot;Verein fur Massenverbreitung guter<br /> Schriften,&quot; &quot;Litterarischen Vereine Minerva und<br /> Neue Klause,&quot; &quot;Deutscher Shriftstellerinnen-<br /> buud,&quot; and of the &quot; Deutscher Press Club zu New<br /> York.&quot; For some little time the periodical has<br /> been courteously forwarded to our offices by the<br /> editor, and we have much pleasure in recommend-<br /> ing it to the notice of our readers. Its contents<br /> are not merely official. Two or more articles on<br /> literary subjects of the day appear in each<br /> number, and in addition to these, very useful lists<br /> of new books in German, French, English, and<br /> Italian. Newly appearing German periodicals<br /> are also announced. In conclusion, some literary<br /> gossip, a few short notices of books, and (a<br /> feature interesting to book collectors) announce-<br /> ments of the latest catalogues published by the<br /> principal German secondhand booksellers make<br /> up a goodly amount of information in return for<br /> the very moderate price of the publication.<br /> V.—The Right to Destroy.<br /> Mr. D. F. Hannigan sends us the following<br /> letter, together with the post-card referred to.<br /> The latter simply says that the firm will be pleased<br /> to receive 4d. in stamps, to cover postage of the<br /> MS., &quot; otherwise we must destroy it.&quot; The qu- s-<br /> tion is, whether they have the right to destroy a<br /> MS. under the circumstances. Of course it may<br /> be argued that an author cannot expect any house<br /> to keep a MS., after refusal, indefinitely, and then<br /> comes the question what to do if the author does<br /> not send stamps.<br /> The Editor, The Author.—Dear Sir,—I would like to know<br /> whether, when an author submits a MS. to a publisher, and<br /> omits to enclose stamps for return of the MS., the pub-<br /> lisher has a right to destroy the MS. I happen to be a<br /> barrister, and I was oertainly under the impression that the<br /> destruction or mutilation of MSS. without authority from<br /> the owner was a criminal offence.<br /> Early in January, 1897,1 submitted a MS., entitled &quot; Tales<br /> of Witchcraft,&quot; to Mr. David Nutt. I intended, as I had<br /> heard from him that he did not see his way to undertake<br /> the publication at his own cost, to send him stamps for<br /> return. By inadvertence I neglected to do so. Judge of<br /> my astonishment at receiving from him a post-card (which<br /> I enclose) stating that, unless stamps were sent, he would<br /> destroy the MS. Has he any snch right by law ?—Yours<br /> faithfully, D. F. Hannioan.<br /> [Note by the Seceetary.—The answer to<br /> this paragraph seems to be quite clear. Mr. Nutt<br /> would have no right whatever to destroy the MS.<br /> If he did so destroy it he certainly would not be<br /> open to criminal proceedings, but the author could<br /> bring an action for damages. If, however, the<br /> author did not return the stamps the publishers<br /> of course might be free either to return the MS.<br /> postage not paid, or return it postage paid and<br /> sue the author (the latter would be a bad plan<br /> from the publishers&#039; point of view) or retain it at<br /> his office until the author . hose to comply with<br /> his request.—G. Herbert Thring.]<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 86 (#98) ##############################################<br /> <br /> 86<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> VI.—The Book Trade with America.<br /> The book trade between the United Kingdom<br /> and the United Stites for the eleven months<br /> ending May 1897 was as follows:<br /> Exported from England, duty free&quot; .£177,496<br /> „ „ dutiable 167,076<br /> Imported from the States during<br /> the same period 166,712<br /> For the eleven months ending May, 1898:<br /> Exported from England, duty free .£118,678<br /> „ dutiable 177,13 7<br /> Imported from the States 154,839<br /> These figures are quoted, with others showing<br /> the whole book trade of the States, in the<br /> Publishers&#039; Circular from the New York Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Weekly.<br /> VII.—Amalgamation of Publishers.<br /> The firm of Bentley is absorbed by the firm of<br /> Macmillan. Whether the absorption will in any<br /> way advance the interests of literature or the<br /> position of literary people remains to be seen.<br /> Those who formerly rallied round Bentley will<br /> perhaps rally round Macmillan, and perhaps they<br /> will not. The papers have been giving the<br /> history of the Bentleys, which is interesting on<br /> account of the names which have been from time<br /> to time connected with them. Some of them<br /> have dwelt upon the honourable character of the<br /> late firm, a thing which one is always pleased to<br /> learn, especially if the assurance is based upon<br /> the evidence of the authors concerned.<br /> IN MEMORIAM.-E. LYNN LINTON.<br /> Reverberant in the van her trumpet blew;<br /> Tried Champion of the weak against the strong,<br /> For cause she loved, &#039;gainst cause she loathed as wrong.<br /> &quot;Ever a fighter,&quot; her keen sword she drew,<br /> Eager to smite the ignoble thro&#039; and thro&#039;,<br /> Bnt tenderest of the tender—Where the Song<br /> To shrine thy name for aje above the throng,<br /> O Woman sweet, and truest of the true!<br /> Now, where o&#039;er Cumbria&#039;s crags grey mists are curl&#039;d,<br /> No more with Thoughts illusive strivings vex&#039;t,<br /> No more by Life&#039;s enigma dread perplez&#039;t,<br /> She sleeps - her armour doffed, her banner furled:<br /> Brave worker in the vineyard of this world,<br /> Flash yet diviner influence from the next!<br /> C. A. Kelly.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> IN another column will be found a note in which<br /> a writer complains of having to sign a docu-<br /> ment resigning his copyright. It is a very<br /> common trick to send a printed form of receipt<br /> which the author is expected to sign without per-<br /> ceiving that by doing so he has been trapped<br /> into resigning his copyright. In such a case as<br /> this the author only has to remember that he<br /> must put his pen thruugh the words which con-<br /> vey the forfeiture of copyright, and that he must<br /> substitute for them the words &quot; Serial right only<br /> in England,&quot; or words to that effect. By this<br /> means he may preserve his property. The words<br /> are, generally, &quot; for the whole rights of,&quot; &amp;c. Of<br /> course, if the editor bargains beforehand for the<br /> copyright, it becomes then a simple question of<br /> acceptance or refusal.<br /> &quot;The authors and writers of Great Britain are<br /> under lasting obligations to Sir Walter Besant.<br /> Under the title of The Aut/wr that gentleman<br /> publishes each month a journal that offers to the<br /> professional and amateur writer so able and con-<br /> vincing a proof of his superiority to the publisher<br /> that the entire guild could be readily pardored<br /> for rising and calling the editor blessed. In the<br /> June number of The Author (which is published,<br /> of course, in London) the ways of the grasping<br /> and mercenary publisher of books are laid bare<br /> in a dozen ways. The long-suffering writer is<br /> taught how vast a profit there always is in the<br /> publication of his work; he is shown how easily<br /> and consciencelessly he is robbed; he is implored<br /> not to dispose of anything so valuable as a virgin<br /> manuscript until he has secured a contract giving<br /> himself all the profits and the publishers nothing<br /> but deficits and debts. The Author should<br /> flourish amazingly. It doubtless does.&quot;—The<br /> Criterion (New York), July 23.<br /> The above was sent to me by three or four<br /> anonymous persons, acting independently, yet<br /> with one consent, all presumably anxious to con-<br /> vince me that a certain portion of the Press of<br /> New York still maintains its reputation. I do<br /> not know the paper—the Criterion—at all, save<br /> from the single number sent to me, which con-<br /> tains this remarkably truthful statement. The<br /> trick of it is to state a small portion of the truth<br /> sandwiched between other statements that not<br /> even Barnum could call truths. Thus The<br /> Author does really, as stated by the fabricator,<br /> lay bare the ways of the grasping and merce-<br /> nary publishers in as many ways as can be<br /> discovered—thanks to the committee of the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 87 (#99) ##############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 87<br /> Publishers&#039; Association we have now learned a<br /> good many more than were previously suspected<br /> by most of us. But as the editor is not engaged<br /> in publisbing, there is no possible question<br /> of &quot; superiority &quot; to publishers. Again, the writer<br /> is nowhere taught by The Author &quot; how vast a<br /> profit there always is in the publication of his<br /> work&quot;—the word &quot;always,&quot; instead of &quot;may be,&quot;<br /> conveys the fabrication: he is shown how easily<br /> he is robbed: that is true: he is not implored to<br /> secure all the profits and &quot;give the publisher all<br /> the deficits and debts &quot;: that is a falsehood: nor<br /> is it possible, if you come to think of it, for the<br /> same book to have both profits and deficits. We<br /> are accustomed to this sort of thing in one or<br /> two of our own papers: it occurs in them when-<br /> ever the editor can be persuaded to slip in such a<br /> paragraph. But why does a New York paper go<br /> out of its way to invent stuff like this about a<br /> matter with which its readers can have no possible<br /> concern? And why this parade of misrepresen-<br /> tation over the management by English writers<br /> of their own property?<br /> It is not the first time that an American paper<br /> has offered a prayer to the Father of Fabrications,<br /> and obtained that prayer, for freedom of imagina-<br /> tion in speaking about me. In my humble person<br /> I have received several courtesies of the same<br /> pleasing kind from the same quarter. On another<br /> occasion in instance, a Boston paper of the baser<br /> sort informed its readers that I had for a whole<br /> twelvemonth been lecturing through the States<br /> &quot;on Theosophy, accompanied by a lady who was<br /> not his wife.&quot; I do not know which was the<br /> more impudent charge. And another paper, whose<br /> name I forget, once informed its readers that, in<br /> certain writings or remarks of mine, I had been<br /> comparing myself with Thackeray, &quot;to the great<br /> disadvantage of the latter!&quot; Meantime The<br /> Author, and the Society which publishes it, are<br /> as prosperous as can be expected, and their friends<br /> the publishers have now condemned themselves<br /> in far plainer and harder language than The<br /> Author has ever used concerning them.<br /> No one must judge of America or the Ameri-<br /> cans by quotations or extracts from certain speci-<br /> mens.of their Press. It is quite possible to have<br /> troops of friends in the States, and yet to receive<br /> such tributes as these. In one sense the writers<br /> are impartial: like the sunshine and the rain<br /> they bless all alike, the small as well as the great.<br /> There are papers in our own country, I dare say,<br /> which are as bad as any in America, but we need<br /> not rake the gutters to find them. It must be<br /> remembered, when we speak of the American<br /> YOL, ix,<br /> Press, that it is not all like the Criterion and the<br /> other papers I have mentioned: that the leading<br /> articles: the &quot;London Letters&quot; and telegrams:<br /> and the columns of news in American papers do<br /> contain a great deal that is fair and appreciative,<br /> while it is critical, concerning our ways, our actions,<br /> and our people. It must also be remembered that<br /> the American point of view is not ours. Especi-<br /> ally have I observed this desire to be fair in their<br /> London Letter, which seems to me, so far as I<br /> have had the opportunity of reading it in Ameri-<br /> can papers, to be generally written in a spirit of<br /> which we have nothing to complain. Of course,<br /> I have not seen the London Letter, if there is one,<br /> of the New York Criterion. If one could venture<br /> to suggest anything to the editor of a London<br /> daily, I would ask him to think over the appoint-<br /> ment of an American journalist to write for his<br /> London columns a London Letter on English<br /> affairs as they seem to an American with friendly<br /> critical eyes. Such a letter would sometimes lead<br /> that editor&#039;s readerR to consider themselves.<br /> The Committee canmt be expected to trans-<br /> act any business of importance at this time of<br /> year. Nothing further, therefore, has been done<br /> with reference to the Draft Agreements of the<br /> Publishers&#039; Association. I trust that something<br /> will be done, and I hope that the expression of<br /> opinion which will be found in another column<br /> will be continued. Above all, it is to be hoped<br /> that the leading and more successful writers, to<br /> whom no publisher would dare to present any<br /> one of their Draft Agreements, will consider their<br /> less successful brethren and make a public stand.<br /> It is not enough to say: &quot;These Agreements<br /> make no difference to me, because I should never<br /> consent to them in my own case.&quot; It is necessary<br /> to take care that they should be offered to no one,<br /> and that the voice of condemnation should be<br /> loud and unmistakable.<br /> A line or two in a letter of Robert Browning&#039;s,<br /> written in the year 1868, makes one ask whether, in<br /> the year 1868, publishers hsld the same remarkable<br /> views about profits and their &quot;equitable &quot; share<br /> of them which they boldly advance thirty years<br /> afterwards? From my own recollection I am<br /> inclined to think that ths practice was the same,<br /> but that the profession was different. This is what<br /> Browning says of his new poem: &quot;One &quot;—that<br /> is, a publisher, only Browning calls him by his<br /> old-fashioned name, a &quot;bookseller &quot;—&quot; sent to<br /> propose last week to publish it at his risk, giving<br /> me all the profits, and to pay me the whole in<br /> advance, &#039;for the incidental advantages of my<br /> name.&#039;&quot; Generous creature!&quot; All the profits.&#039;<br /> K<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 88 (#100) #############################################<br /> <br /> 88<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> What could be more noble? And for himself?<br /> —nothing. Only the &quot; incidental advantages &quot; of<br /> the poet&#039;s name. Now, we have seen that the<br /> profits due to the author, based on the &quot; equit-<br /> able &quot; wisdom of the united publishers, mean—<br /> or that they may mean, because the more greatly<br /> daring may make them mean much less—15 per<br /> cent. of the real profits; the remaining 85 per<br /> cent. going to the publisher. This newly dis-<br /> covered result of equitable treatment of the ques-<br /> tion was no doubt pretty well known to the<br /> disinterested gentleman who proposed to give<br /> Browning all the profits.<br /> In another column will be found a little piece<br /> of literary history which will interest many.<br /> The Critic of New York having become a<br /> monthly instead of a weekly journal, there<br /> remains only the Dial of Chicago to represent<br /> literature and literature only. The fact is<br /> remarkable: we should not have expected<br /> Chicago to be a centre of American literary<br /> criticism: yet it is not only a centre of criticism,<br /> but it is becoming a centre of literary produc-<br /> tion. Chicago is not altogether, therefore, gone<br /> over to the making of money.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> THE BACONIANS.<br /> WHILE it is obvious to all who have<br /> any considerable acquaintance with the<br /> writings of Bacon and Shakespeare, that<br /> the process of destroying the theorists&#039; arguments,<br /> by detecting their logical inconsequence, is satis-<br /> factory, yet to those who cannot bring a knowledge<br /> of the two men&#039;s work and times to assist them<br /> it would prove less convincing than one more<br /> dependent upon tangible facts. From my expe-<br /> rience of Baconians, as they call themselves, I<br /> have little doubt that the conduct of their<br /> arguments is invariably defective, and I am<br /> always pleased to discover the fallacies;<br /> but there is much more enjoyment to be<br /> got out of giving the lie direct to their major<br /> premises. It is curious that this is so seldom<br /> done, seeing how difficult it appears to be for<br /> these people to speak the truth, and how many of<br /> their statements—and those, too, the most striking<br /> —admit of such contradiction. I think I shall<br /> make myself clear by one example out of the<br /> many I could give. From an article in the last<br /> December number of Pearson&#039;s Magazine, which<br /> a friend showed me with fear and trembling for<br /> the empire of Shakespeare, I gather that the<br /> &quot;Promus argument&quot; is still considered a strong-<br /> hold by Baconians, and is therefore proper for<br /> my purpose. It is roughly as follows: Baeon&#039;s<br /> &quot;Promus &quot; is a collection of some 1700 proverbs,<br /> words, turns of speech, &amp;c., which are of frequent<br /> occurrence in Shakespeare&#039;s plays, but are not to<br /> be found in the literature of his period. Two<br /> men alone and independently cannot use hundreds<br /> of identical words, &amp;c.; therefore, it is concluded,<br /> Bacon, who noted down the words, must have<br /> written the plays. Here it is possible, doubtless, to<br /> attack and destroy the minor premises and the con-<br /> clusion, but there is a simpler and more effective<br /> method of procedure, namely, to deny the truth of<br /> tin major. It is neither true that Shakespeare use.s<br /> the proverbs and expressions to any surprising<br /> extent, nor is it true that the words and turns of<br /> speech are confined to the &quot;Promus&quot; and the<br /> plays. The effort made by Mrs. Pott, who is the<br /> authority on this point, to establish Shakespeare&#039;s<br /> use of the &quot;Promus&quot; entries is for the most part<br /> frivolous, and her ignorance of sixteenth century<br /> literature incredible. At the end of her edition of<br /> the &quot;Promus &quot; is a list of about 6000 books read<br /> by her or other Baconians, with the intention of<br /> finding &quot; Promus&quot; entries, and a column of those<br /> they found is adjoined. What they did with<br /> their eyes while employed in the search goodness<br /> only knows, for in every case in which I have<br /> tested the result I have found them blind. Some-<br /> times, where they have marked down one or two,<br /> I have discovered as many as fifty to a hundred<br /> instances; and even their pet expressions, such<br /> as &quot;good morrow&quot; and &quot;good night,&quot; I have<br /> found to be the commonest of common property.<br /> For proof, let your office boy compare the<br /> &quot;Promus&quot; with Caxton&#039;s &quot;Reynard the Fox,&quot;<br /> Barnfield&#039;s &quot;Poems,&quot; Chettle&#039;s &quot; Patient Grissel,&quot;<br /> Heywood&#039;s &quot;Fair Maid of the Exchange,&quot; and<br /> Lodge&#039;s &quot;Rosalynd,&quot; which Mrs. Pott calls a<br /> play.<br /> I suspect my power to slaughter Baconians<br /> would last out a good deal longer than your<br /> patience in listening to the story of their deaths,<br /> but I will confine myself to saying that I believe<br /> the theory would come to a sudden termination<br /> if some well informed student of Elizabethan<br /> literature would take upon himself the examina-<br /> tion of the statements on which it is based—he<br /> would not need to trouble his head about the<br /> quality of the deductions drawn from them.<br /> H. P. Gilbert.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 89 (#101) #############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 89<br /> !rHE ISSUE OF POPULAR COPYBIGETS.<br /> SIR GEORGE NEWNES presided at the<br /> first general meeting of the shareholders<br /> of Messrs. George Newnes, Limited, and in<br /> a speech on the &quot;busy and prosperous year&quot;<br /> which the firm had experienced he referred, among<br /> other subjects, to the large business they were<br /> doing in the issuing of popular works in parts.<br /> Some of the large eminent book-publishing houses<br /> had recognised that they (Messrs. Newnes) were<br /> specially able to do that successfully. He recalled<br /> the fact that Messrs. Constable, who gave<br /> .£10,000 for Dr. Nansen&#039;s copyright, came to<br /> them, and they accepted their proposal to publish<br /> Dr. Nansen&#039;s book in pamphlet form. It had<br /> been a wonderful success. Messrs. Bartholomew<br /> had brought them the &quot;Citizen&#039;s Atlas,&quot; which<br /> was going wonderfully well in parts. The firm<br /> of John Murray had also come to them, and as<br /> soon as the holidays were over they should begin<br /> publishing in pamphlet form some of Mr.<br /> Murray&#039;s most popular copyrights, commencing<br /> with Du Chaillu&#039;s &quot; Land of the Midnight Sun.&quot;<br /> STEVENSONIANA.<br /> f&quot;|&quot;&gt;HE additional volume in the collected Edin-<br /> I burgh edition of the works of Robert<br /> Louis Stevenson has just been published.<br /> Mr. Sidney Colvin writes a preface, and describes<br /> the book as &quot;a medley, made up of items, some<br /> serious and some trifling.&quot; It contains a great<br /> deal of personal light upon the life of the late<br /> author, and subscribers will be pleased to receive<br /> so unexpectedly such an interesting book. The<br /> preface he wrote, but never printed, for his<br /> &quot;Master of Ballantrae&quot; is here; also &quot;reflections<br /> and remarks on human life &quot; ; and many other<br /> remnants in prose and verse. His ideal home<br /> was one that would have a little cosy room in<br /> warm colours, the sofas and floor thick with rich<br /> furs, and three shelves filled with &quot;eternal books<br /> that never weary.&quot; Among these are Shake-<br /> speare, Moliere, Montaigne, Lamb, Sterne, De<br /> Musset&#039;s Comedies, the &quot; Arabian Nights,&quot; George<br /> Borrow&#039;s &quot;Bible in Spain,&quot; &quot;The Pilgrim&#039;s<br /> Progress,&quot; &quot;Guy Mannering,&quot; &quot;Rob Roy,&quot; and<br /> &quot;immortal Boswell, sole among biographers.&quot;<br /> In case of insomnia there should be within reach<br /> of the bed books of a &quot; particular and dippable<br /> order &quot;—&quot; Pepys,&quot; the &quot;Paston Letters,&quot; Burt&#039;s<br /> &quot;Letters from the Highlands,&quot; and the &quot; Newgate<br /> Calendar.&quot; At Davos Platz he made verses and<br /> drawings—reproduced in the volume—for the<br /> amusement of his stepson and himself. He also<br /> reviewed a thrilling little tale of his stepson&#039;s,<br /> called &quot;Black Canyon; or, Wild Adventures in<br /> the Far West,&quot; in these terms:—<br /> A very remarkable work. Every page produces an effect.<br /> The end is as singular as the beginning. I never saw such<br /> a work before.<br /> There are &quot;Moral Emblems&quot; and &quot;Moral<br /> Tales&quot; in the book, among them this one<br /> describing the drawing of an explorer:<br /> The frozen peaks he once explored,<br /> But now he&#039;s dead and by the board.<br /> How better far at home to have stayed<br /> Attended by the parlour-maid,<br /> And warmed his knees before the fire<br /> Until the hour when folks retire!<br /> So if you would be spared to friends<br /> Do nothing but for business ends.<br /> And this is shot at the reader at the close of a<br /> description of a pirate:<br /> You also soan your life&#039;s horizon<br /> For all that you can clap your eyes on.<br /> Finally, we quote the following more serious<br /> verses from one of two lighthouse poems:<br /> The brilliant kernel of the night,<br /> The flaming ligbtroom circles me;<br /> I sit within a blaze of light<br /> Held high above the dusky sea.<br /> Far off the surf doth, break and roar<br /> Along bleak miles of moonlit shore,<br /> Where through the tides of tumbling wave<br /> Falls in an avalanche of foam,<br /> And drives its churned waters home<br /> Up many an undercliff and care.<br /> » « • •<br /> The night is over like a dream:<br /> The sea-birds cry and dip themselves;<br /> And in the early sunlight, steam<br /> The newly-bared and dripping shelves,<br /> Around whose verge the glassy wave<br /> With lisping wash is heard to lave;<br /> While, on the white tower lifted high,<br /> With yellow light in faded glass<br /> The oirclii g lenses flish and pass,<br /> And siokly shine against the sky.<br /> An entertaining letter of Stevenson&#039;s on the<br /> education of women, dated Nov. 1870, lately came<br /> into possession of Mr. Walter T. Spencer, the<br /> secondhand bookseller of New Oxford-street. It<br /> is written to a cousin. We extract the following<br /> sentences:<br /> You will probably know how nicely Women&#039;s Bights<br /> were reoeived by some of my fellow students the other day.<br /> The female medicals were hooted, hissed, and jostled till<br /> the police interfered. My views are very neutral. I quite<br /> believe that Miss and the rest of our fellow<br /> studentesses are the first of a noble army, pioneers,<br /> Columbuses, and all that sort of thing. But at the same<br /> time Miss is playing for the esteem of posterity.<br /> Soit, I give her posterity, but I won&#039;t marry either her or her<br /> fellows. Let posterity marry them. If posterity gets hold<br /> of this letter I shall probably be burnt in effigy by some<br /> Royal Female College of Surgeons of the future..<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 90 (#102) #############################################<br /> <br /> go THE AUTHOR.<br /> DE. BEANDES&#039;S SHAKESPEAEE.<br /> AFTER reading the account Professor<br /> Brandes gives of Shakespeare, I am struck<br /> by the insistence with which he dwells on<br /> every biographical fact which it is possible or<br /> impossible to seize hold of with certainty, as a<br /> context to the study of Shakespeare&#039;s plays in<br /> sequence. He desires to prove that the plays are<br /> genuine, though there may be occasional foreign<br /> interpolations, and he ends the work by saying<br /> that his aim has teen to prove &quot;not that<br /> thirty-six plays and several poems can be read<br /> in unconnected fashion, but that Shakespeare<br /> was a man who felt and thought, rejoiced<br /> and suffered, pondered, dreamed, and wrote<br /> poetry.&quot;<br /> When the professor visited Ann Hathaway&#039;s<br /> house at Shottery, near Stratford, and was shown<br /> with pride by a distant descendant of the<br /> Hathaway family the open Bible containing<br /> family names as well as other relics and portraits<br /> of Shakespeare, he tells us how he inquired of her<br /> whether she had read the plays. And on her<br /> replying, &quot;Oh! / read my Bible,&quot; he assumes<br /> that if a descendant of that family can be thus<br /> ignorant, we have proof enough that poor Shakes-<br /> peare was afflicted with a most ignorant and<br /> unsympathetic wife and surroundings. This may<br /> or may not have been the case, and indeed<br /> Professor Brandes draws a tedious and gloomy<br /> picture of Shakespeare&#039;s last years at Stratford-<br /> on-Avon. Though his study of the plays is<br /> interesting, I would like to draw attention to the<br /> dillerent paneg&gt;ric which we find in Heinrich<br /> Heine&#039;s &quot;Miittchen and Frauen&quot; (Notes on<br /> Shakespeare&#039;s Heroines), where he says :—<br /> &quot;Shakespeare is as true to nature as he is<br /> faithful in delineating history. It is often said<br /> that he holds up a mirror to nature. This is not<br /> correct, as these words convey a wrong impression<br /> concerning the relations in which a poet stands to<br /> nature. .Nature is not reflected in the poet&#039;s<br /> mind; he is endowed with the innate capacity for<br /> representing nature, which representation is akin<br /> to the most faithful reflection; he comes into the<br /> world a world-wise man, and every part of the<br /> external world is immediately understood by him<br /> in its entirety when he awakens from the dreams<br /> of his childhood and attains to a knowledge of<br /> himself. For his mind bears an impress of the<br /> whole; he knows the ultimate reasons of all<br /> phenomena which to the ordinary mind appear<br /> problematic, and which to the ordinary investi-<br /> gator seem difficult if not impossible of solution.<br /> . . . Just as the mathematician can immediately<br /> explain the whole circle and its centre if he is<br /> shown the smallest part of a circle, so also the<br /> poet in the very act of contemplating the<br /> infinitesimal part of objective things realises the<br /> connection between this part and ail other things.<br /> He seems to know the circle of things and their<br /> centre, and sees things in their widest dimensions<br /> and to the inmost core.<br /> &quot;But before the poet awakens to this marvellous<br /> comprehension, he must always be brought in<br /> contact with some portion of the objective world.<br /> This perception of a fragment of the phenomenal<br /> world is reached by means of his senses, and<br /> forms, as it were, the outward event determining<br /> those inward revelations of which his works are<br /> the result. And the greater the poet the more is<br /> our curiosity excited concerning those external<br /> occurrences which first called his works into<br /> being. We like to hunt up the actual facts of a<br /> poet&#039;s life. This curiosity is all the more foolish,<br /> as, according to what was previously stated, the<br /> importance of external occurrences bears no pro-<br /> portion to the importance of the creations emanat-<br /> ing from them. These occurrences may be, and<br /> usually are, as trivial and insignificant as the<br /> poet&#039;s life ordinarily is. I say trivial and insig-<br /> nificant, for I will not make use of sadder words.<br /> Poets present themselves to the world through<br /> the halo of their works, and, when looked at from<br /> afar, they dazzle us by their glory. Let us never<br /> inspect their lives too closely. We may compare<br /> them to those bright beacons shining athwart<br /> lawn and bower, which we take for the stars of<br /> the world—for diamonds and emeralds, costly<br /> jewels which king&#039;s children playing in the garden<br /> have hung on to the shrubs and then forgotten<br /> . . . for bright dewdrops which have rolled<br /> away into the high grass, and are now refreshing<br /> themselves in the cool night air, sparkling with<br /> joy until the approach of day, when the rosy<br /> dawn draws them back into herself. . . .<br /> Oh! let us not seek the track of these stars,<br /> jewels, and dewdrops by the light of day. In<br /> their stead we shall perceive a poor, discoloured<br /> worm, crawling miserably across our path—<br /> hateful to look upon, and yet which, owing<br /> to a curious feeling of pity, we refrain from<br /> crushing.&quot;<br /> Heine had no love for &quot;critics,&quot; though his<br /> mind was eminently critical. But, though<br /> Professor Brandes has given the world a deeper<br /> critical study of Shakespeare&#039;s plays, I doubt<br /> whether we can read in it a higher appreciation<br /> of Shakespeare. Ida Benecke.<br /> i 8, Canfield-gardens, N.W.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 91 (#103) #############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 9«<br /> THE PASSING OF THE &quot;CHAP-BOOK.&quot;<br /> rf^HE following circular has been sent out from<br /> | the office of the Dial, Chicago. It will be<br /> of interest to those who are concerned wiih<br /> American contemporary criticism. It is here<br /> abridged:<br /> &quot;By arrangement with Messrs. Herbert S.<br /> Stone and Co., the owners of the Chap-Book, the<br /> subscription list, the name, and the goodwill of<br /> that publication have been purchased by the<br /> Dial, which will fill out all subscriptions. The<br /> last issue of the Chap-Book was that of July i.<br /> The magazine was first published on May 15,<br /> 1894, in Cambridge, Mass., by Messrs. Stone and<br /> Kimball, both members of which firm were then<br /> undergraduates in Harvard College. It was in<br /> form a small duodecimo pamphlet, issued semi-<br /> monthly, and was at first meant to be little more<br /> than an attractive kind of circular for advertising<br /> the books published by the firm. But its instant<br /> and somewhat unexpected popularity led its pub-<br /> lishers at once into an attempt to make the maga-<br /> zine an organ of the younger American writers,<br /> and a means of introducing to the public new and<br /> curious developments in foreign literatures. The<br /> Chap-Book was either praised as being up to<br /> date, or denounced as being &#039; decadent,&#039; and had<br /> considerable vogue. Publications which were<br /> evidently imitations of it, both in form and spirit,<br /> sprang up in many quarters, and its editors have<br /> collected something like 150 of these curious<br /> ventures.<br /> &quot;In October, 1894, the periodical was removed<br /> from Cambridge to Chicago, and since that date<br /> has been continuously issued from the latter city<br /> on the ist and 15th of every month. May 1,<br /> 1896, it was transferred by its original owners to<br /> the new publishing firm of Herbert S. Stone and<br /> Co. It has been edited from the start by Mr.<br /> Herbert S. Stone, with the assistance of Mr. Bliss<br /> Carman at the beginning, and of Mr. Harrison<br /> Garfield Rhodes during the last four years. In<br /> January, 1897, the Chap-Book was enlarged to<br /> quarto size, and introduced reviews of current<br /> literature as a prominent feature of its contents.<br /> This change brought with it a marked increase of<br /> dignity and authority; it became more serious<br /> than it had been, yet it did not cease to be enter-<br /> taining. Editorially it was conducted with inde-<br /> pendence and vigour, and occupied to a consider-<br /> able extent a field which it had made its own.<br /> 100 numbers were issued altogether, sixty-four in<br /> the smaller and thirty-six in the larger form.<br /> When purchased by the Dial four numbers of<br /> the ninth volume had appeared. The Chap-Book<br /> has had a distinguished list of contributors, in-<br /> cluding most of the poets, novelists, and essayists<br /> both of England and the United States, whose<br /> names are widely known to the reading public,<br /> and its pages have furnished forth the contents<br /> of several volumes of stories and essays. It has,<br /> in a word, done services both sturdy and valu-<br /> able in behalf of good literature, and made an<br /> honourable record for itself during the four years<br /> of its existence.<br /> &quot;By this accession the Dial gains a new and<br /> important constituency. While features likely to<br /> increase its interest and value may be added, the<br /> journal will in the main adhere to the well-defined<br /> aims and principles which have governed it for<br /> nearly twenty years. But the absorption of the<br /> Chap-Book will give it a certain stimulus and a<br /> widened range, and the recent change of the<br /> Critic of New York from the form of a weekly<br /> paper to that of a monthly magazine will leave the<br /> Dial in practical possession of the field of dis-<br /> tinctively literary journalism in the United States.<br /> As long ago as 1892 Whittier called it &#039; the best<br /> and ablest literary paper in the country,&#039; and<br /> competent critical opinion from many quarters<br /> has repeatedly confirmed this judgment.&quot;<br /> A PROPOSED BUREAU.<br /> ACORRESPONDENT, in another column,<br /> advocates the establishment of a literary<br /> bureau to which writers would send their<br /> papers and editors would apply in seaiv.h of<br /> papers. The difficulty of establishing such a<br /> bureau would be so great as to make it practically<br /> impossible. For, first, it would have to become<br /> recognised and used both by writers and editors.<br /> It would be necessary that both writers and<br /> editors should see their advantage iu adopting<br /> this method. As regards the writer he must be<br /> persuaded that he would have a better chance of<br /> getting his work taken by a bureau than by<br /> direct offer. Who should persuade him!&#039; It<br /> might happen that he had two papers taken in<br /> one year before joining the bureau and only one<br /> in the year after joining it; then he would<br /> declare that the bureau was useless.<br /> Again, there are a dozen possible writers ou<br /> any subject: if one belongs to the bureau and<br /> eleven send in the old way to the editor, how is<br /> that one benefited, and why should the editor go<br /> to the bureau? If, however, to save himself<br /> trouble the editor should prefer the bureau the<br /> thing might be feasible. All these methods and<br /> complaints ignore the ground feature of the<br /> situation: viz., that the editor is absolute master<br /> of it.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 92 (#104) #############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> The only way to make such a bureau possible<br /> is to make editors see their advantage in it.<br /> Could something be attempted in the way of<br /> receiving names with credentials, &amp;c., from mem-<br /> bers willing to furnish papers on certain subjects,<br /> and then to supply editors with the list, and<br /> with an offer to procure for them papers<br /> on these subjects at short notice and with-<br /> out fee? It might save editors trouble to<br /> have such a list ready to hand. It would,<br /> however, only be useful to them in the case of<br /> specialists: and again only in the case of those<br /> writers who possess special knowledge, but are<br /> not of such standing as to command a hearing<br /> and advanced terms. For instance, the unknown<br /> man who has lived in China, or the man who has<br /> travelled in China, or the man who has studied<br /> Chinese institutions and literature, might at the<br /> present moment be a very useful person for an<br /> editor, if he could get at him. But could our<br /> proposed bureau catch him? Again, if we had<br /> such a list it might be useful to any literary<br /> agent, with whom the Society could treat. But it<br /> would be of no use whatever to the man who was<br /> willing to write on any subject that offered. That<br /> man&#039;s only chance is to please an editor by his<br /> style and methods of treatment in a paper offered<br /> on the present system.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—The Fate of MSS., and a Literary<br /> Bureau.<br /> THE burden of complaint in many letters<br /> published in The Author is that editors<br /> keep MSS. intrusted to them for an in-<br /> definite time before returning or accepting them.<br /> Editors have been accused of discourtesy and<br /> rudeness by indignant writers. I am afraid,<br /> however, that all the strictures and advice possible<br /> will not move their obdurate hearts. Editors<br /> study themselves, and not their would-be contri-<br /> butors; in fact, they please themselves.<br /> My own experiences—extending over a decade<br /> of years—have told me that editors as a rule, in<br /> spite of those delusive words in italics, tee are<br /> always pleased to consider any MSS. sent us-~<br /> seldom require any outside contributions. They<br /> have their own staff and troops of friends and<br /> relations whose work, if only near up to the mark,<br /> is more acceptable than that of a stranger. Some<br /> years ago, when a certain weekly paper was<br /> started, the editor asked me to write regularly<br /> for it. I am. sure the MSS.. he received from<br /> outsiders were better than mine, which he used<br /> because he knew me.<br /> Of course, editors may receive and use a paper<br /> on a subject which he may happen to want, but<br /> this is only a chance. Some time ago, when a<br /> certain magazine, which is still in existence, was<br /> about to appear, the editor&#039;s sanctum was literally<br /> piled with hundreds of MSS., which had been<br /> sent in on approval. One morning the editor<br /> instructed a clerk to return them all, when<br /> suddenly his glance alighted on one whose super-<br /> scription was very neatly written. He opened<br /> it, read it, liked it, and published it, and the<br /> lucky author afterwards wrote regularly for the<br /> magazine. The others, which had not been<br /> opened, were declined with thanks. I can vouch<br /> for this fact to prove how MSS. are not read, and<br /> how chance is often alone the arbiter of their<br /> destinies.<br /> I happened to call one day on a friendly sub-<br /> editor of a weekly journal. As we were talking,<br /> a MS. was delivered by the postman. My friend<br /> took it up, opened it, and handed it to me.<br /> &quot;See what this is like,&quot; he said.<br /> Glancing at it, I discovered that it was in a<br /> literary friend&#039;s handwriting, which induced me<br /> to read it attentively. It was not bad; it was<br /> not good, but passable. Naturally, in my desire<br /> to help a fellow scribbler, I recommended it, and<br /> it was at once sent off to the printer in my hear-<br /> ing. Now, had I not been in the room at the<br /> time, I am certain that it would have been<br /> returned unread. I could multiply other instances<br /> in my experience if space afforded it.<br /> Now, all my remarks point to one conclusion,<br /> and this is the crux of the matter. There ought<br /> to be no need for any writer to send his work hap-<br /> hazard, broadcast, on the poor chance of accept-<br /> ance. Let there be a combination amongst<br /> writers to abandon this undignified practice, and<br /> let a literary bureau be formed by the Authors&#039;<br /> Society where all MSS. can be sent to await<br /> the time when editors happening to want an<br /> article on a particular subject—a dialogue, poem,<br /> short story, or what not—will be forced to apply<br /> for their wants. Why need writers beg for<br /> recognition, and submit to the thousand and<br /> one annoyances, indignities, and disappointments<br /> consequent upon scattering their writings about?<br /> I have in a previous issue advocated the need<br /> and the uses of such a bureau, and I am ready at<br /> any time to formulate a plan of its modus operandi<br /> to any practical person who is ready to start and<br /> bring the idea to &quot; a consummation devoutly to be<br /> wished.&quot; Isidore G. Ascher.<br /> 7, Bullingham-uiansions, Kensington, W.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 93 (#105) #############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 93<br /> II.—The Futuee of the Short Story.<br /> When a writer has obtained or made his<br /> &quot;public,&quot; he has obtained or made for himself a<br /> &quot;quotation &quot; in the market; he writes so many<br /> words and he expects to receive so many pence,<br /> shillings, or pounds. I have no quarrel with this<br /> arrangement naturally educed out of the laws of<br /> supply and demand. The publisher has appeared<br /> to me individually as a gentleman, the editor as<br /> courteous, the reviewer—well! in some cases, as<br /> a reviewer, in other cases as a pedal unconsciously<br /> receiving pressure from fashion or conventionality.<br /> The object of my letter, then, is not to air a<br /> grievance, but to examine conditions. I do not<br /> desire to abuse, but to direct attention to the<br /> future of the short story.<br /> We are told, on the authority of the publisher,<br /> that, save in the cases of an established reputa-<br /> tion, the public will not now buy volumes of<br /> short stories. The writer, then, must look for<br /> his reward from the journals to which he con-<br /> tributes, and with no significant hope of repro-<br /> duction in volume form. What do they offer?<br /> A varying publicity and a remuneration which<br /> oscillates between Mi0 and .£15. The latter sum<br /> is a round one. It is; but does it lead to an<br /> eventual quotation of the writer in the market?<br /> My experience is that it does not do so. And it<br /> appears to me to be uncommonly doubtful<br /> whether the short story writer, who may be<br /> provident as well as artistic, will think it worth<br /> his while in the future to introduce strong energy<br /> of originality and artistic finishinto compositions<br /> that go to dull shelves, leaving him again<br /> haggling for a remuneration varying from .£10 to<br /> .£15. Your opinion upon these points, sir, would<br /> doubtless be as interesting to the readers of The<br /> Author as they would be to A Countryman.<br /> [Surely a writer of short stories whose name is<br /> appended to all his work should make his clientele<br /> of people anxious to read him and really to buy<br /> journals in which that work appears. When his<br /> name is established competition begins. If his<br /> nume does not appear there can be, of course, no<br /> chance of advance.—Ed.]<br /> III.—Why &quot;Disgeaceful &quot; &#039;(<br /> In an article in the Westminster Review (June)<br /> on poets and poetry, the writer says, &quot;it is a<br /> deplorable fact that even those who are gifted<br /> by nature with poetic abilities, with a heart full<br /> of love, sympathy, and passionate emotions, are<br /> disgracefully trying their very best to suppress<br /> those feelings, to be carried away by them under<br /> the magic influence of materialism.&quot;<br /> Now, sir, this is in my opinion a pretty touch<br /> of genuine insight on the part of the writer,<br /> But what prompts the suppression of those<br /> feelings? Is it not merely that they don&#039;t bring<br /> bread and cheese? A man must live, and<br /> possibly has to help to keep others living, and<br /> those feelings have to be suppressed and replaced<br /> by others in consonance with materialistic occupa-<br /> tion in order that body and soul, or bodies and<br /> souls, may be kept together. You quoted in The<br /> Author some months ago from the Glasgow<br /> Herald a proposal for the endowment of poets<br /> by the State. I do not say that I should support<br /> such a scheme, but in the absence of any pro-<br /> v sion to enable true poets to develop themselves,<br /> I wish to protest against the reproach of &quot;dis-<br /> gracefully.&quot; A. L.<br /> IV.— JoTJBNALISTIC ETIQUETTE.<br /> I beg to send you the following account of my<br /> experience at the hands of the editor of a certain<br /> newly-started &quot;Society&quot; paper, in the hope<br /> that it may prove a warning to other young<br /> writers.<br /> About four weeks ago I submitted to the editor<br /> in question some personal paragraphs, which he<br /> accepted, and asked me to send others. At the<br /> same time he expressed his willingness to consider<br /> any short stories I cared to submit. Accordingly<br /> I left two with him. The first batch of para-<br /> graphs having been published, 1 forwarded some<br /> more, together with a letter in which I asked,<br /> tasually, if any decision had been arrived at<br /> regarding the stories.<br /> This was not answered, and the paragraphs did<br /> not appear.<br /> The following week I sent a third batch, and<br /> inquired if the editor intended using any of the<br /> second lot. This brought me the following letter,<br /> signed by the sub-editor:<br /> Dear , You cannot be well versed in journaliatio<br /> etiquette if you do not know that editors never advise<br /> contributors whether they intend to use oopy submitted or<br /> not.<br /> I have charge of the short story department here, and I<br /> had put aside your stories for careful consideration later on,<br /> but as you are so incessantly worrying me for news about<br /> them, I simply have no alternative but to send them back to<br /> you, as I do now, with many tbanks.<br /> My editor, as far as I know, is not using your paragraphs,<br /> so that you have full liberty to submit them elsewhere.<br /> Several of them consist of re-written matter.<br /> Yours truly,<br /> (Signed) ,<br /> Sub-editor.<br /> P.S.—I have just shown this letter to my editor, who<br /> fully approves of it, and wishes me to add that one of the<br /> paragraphs you have submitted to him has already appeared<br /> in a recent number of the paper.<br /> This courteous letter contains several mis-<br /> statements. None of my paragraphs consisted of<br /> re-written matter. The expression &quot;incessant<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 94 (#106) #############################################<br /> <br /> 94 THE AUTHOR.<br /> worrying&quot; is totally unwarranted by the mere<br /> fact of my having on one occasion only casually<br /> alluded to the matter of a contribution being<br /> under the editor&#039;s consideration.<br /> My experience of &quot; journalistic etiquette&quot; may<br /> not be as profound as this gentleman&#039;s, but it<br /> has taught me that under no circumstances is<br /> an article published by a well-conducted paper<br /> without the contributor being advised before-<br /> hand.<br /> Finally, with regard to the allegation that I<br /> forwarded as original matter items obtained from<br /> his own paper, it is too absurd to suppose that<br /> any journalist would do such a thing. I obtained<br /> the item of news in question from a perfectly<br /> legitimate source, and was unaware it had<br /> appeared in print a day or two before I sub-<br /> mitted it.<br /> As I was absent from town, I commissioned<br /> a friend of mine to call at the office and demand<br /> from the editor an explanation of this letter, and<br /> the reasons which had led him to sanction it, as<br /> other letters I had previously received from him<br /> had been couched in most amiable terms. He<br /> refused point-blank to discuss the matter,<br /> although admitting that his subordinate&#039;s letter<br /> was written with his own knowledge and ap-<br /> proval.<br /> Yours, sadder and wiser,<br /> A Woman Writer.<br /> [Our correspondent is not quite accurate in her<br /> opinion that contributions to a paper are never<br /> inserted without the contributor being advised<br /> beforehand. There are circumstances in which it<br /> is impossible to wait while the contributor is<br /> advised. Generally, of course, a proof is the<br /> form by which the contributor is advised.—Ed.]<br /> V.—The Struggle for Recognition.<br /> May I be allowed to suggest, in reference to<br /> the editor&#039;s concluding remarks on &quot; The Struggle<br /> for Recognition,&quot; that whereas in the time of<br /> Dickens and Marryat there were, say, fifty<br /> promising literary aspirants, there are now a<br /> thousand or more. It is the same in art of all<br /> kinds. Hence the keenness of competition and<br /> the necessity of money and interest in securing a<br /> hearing. The endless magazines that are floated,<br /> with very often their own staff of contributors,<br /> when, in the time of Dickens, journals were<br /> comparatively few and editors were less bombarded<br /> with copy, all tell in many ways against the<br /> literary aspirant and outsider. Then there are<br /> the various cliques and rings. What are the<br /> chances of the poor novelist? The public invari-<br /> ably rush after a name that is generally procured<br /> by preliminary puffs, beating the drum, and Press<br /> booms. The struggling outsider must be sweated,<br /> and think him sell highly honoured in securing<br /> i hat privilege, or he will starve.<br /> Annabel Gray.<br /> VI.—The Book and the Reviewer.<br /> On reading in The Author for August your<br /> remarks under the heading &quot;The Book and&quot; the<br /> Reviewer,&quot; I am tempted to bring under the<br /> notice of your readers an example of the un-<br /> satisfactory and slipshod way in which books are<br /> sometimes reviewed.<br /> As I am the author of the book in question, I<br /> will not (in order to avoid any appearance of<br /> wishing to advertise my own wares) give the<br /> name of the book; nor, with your permission,<br /> append my name to this letter; and shall, as f*r<br /> as possible, avoid saying anything by which the<br /> book can be recognised by those who have not<br /> read it.<br /> It is the history of a campaign in which I took<br /> part some thirty years ago, thrown into the form<br /> of a semi-political novel, embracing politics in one<br /> country and war in another, and when my tale is<br /> told I add a chapter entitled &quot; L&#039;Avenir,&quot; ventur-<br /> ing a prophecy as to what will occur in the near<br /> future when a Bourbon sits again on the throne<br /> of France, and describing the death of my hero<br /> as if that event had already occurred.<br /> Anyone reading the book with the slightest<br /> attention, and who possessed the smallest amount<br /> of historical knowledge, even if ignorant of the<br /> meaning of the words &quot;L&#039;Avenir,&quot; would perceive<br /> that the incidents recounted in the last chapter<br /> could not possibly as yet have happened.<br /> Before me lie at this moment a number of<br /> reviews of this book. The first I take up does<br /> not say a word as to its literary merits or de-<br /> merits, but deliberately, or perhaps carelessly, takes<br /> passages, which do not bear on each other, from<br /> different pages and strings them together as if<br /> they were consecutive and referred to the same<br /> person, which they do not, and then turns the<br /> whole into ridicule because the political views of<br /> the author do not agree with the politics of the<br /> newspaper in which this review appears.<br /> The second review I take up states that my<br /> hero violently checked &quot; the vagaries of a drunken<br /> policeman,&quot; though there is no reference what-<br /> ever to a drunken policeman in the book.<br /> The third gives in inverted commas distorted<br /> quotations, substituting the reviewer&#039;s words for<br /> those of the author, and thereby totally altering<br /> the style.<br /> The fourth praises the book in the most<br /> exaggerated terms, and entirely above its deserts.<br /> This reviewer, I am given to understand, is a<br /> personal friend of the publisher,<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 95 (#107) #############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 95<br /> One review attacks the book in very vulgar<br /> and seemingly vindictive language. The reviewer<br /> being, I have reason to suspect, a man whom I<br /> took to task some time ago for a breach of literary<br /> etiquette.<br /> Two of these reviews—possibly written by the<br /> same individual, although appearing in publica-<br /> tions of diametrically opposite principles—state<br /> that my hero was killed in the presence of a<br /> certain personage who has now been dead for<br /> more than twenty years, while, as a matter of<br /> fact, I state that my hero still lives, and his death<br /> has yet to take place in &quot; L&#039;Avenir.&quot;<br /> By the irony of fate the publication which<br /> attacked my book the most violently now devotes<br /> a whole page to an advertisement quoting the<br /> opinions of other reviewers who bestow on it<br /> unqualified praise!<br /> A Member of the Authors&#039; Society.<br /> VII. — From Magazine Publisher to<br /> Author.<br /> &quot;Dear Sir,—We have at present in course of<br /> preparation a new serial dealing with dangers<br /> incurred and dangers escaped, and I am proposing<br /> to include in it a chapter on Australian bush-<br /> rangers and their ways, describing in a vivid and<br /> dramatic style a few of the more exciting cases of<br /> &#039;Hands up!&#039;<br /> &quot;The length of the chapter will be about 5000<br /> words, and the fee I am authorised to offer for<br /> the copyright is ten pounds (.£i0). I should<br /> want the MS. by the end of the present month.<br /> &quot;Will you kindly let me know whether you can<br /> undertake the MS. chapter? As the time is<br /> rather short an early answer will greatly oblige,<br /> &quot;Yours faithfully,<br /> &quot;The Editor.&quot;<br /> &quot;I should be glad if you will treat this letter<br /> as confidential.&quot;<br /> Note.—Do Messrs. require this to be<br /> confidential because they are afraid their other<br /> .contributors would resent my having such mag-<br /> nificent prices for special knowledge, or can it be<br /> that they are ashamed of offering them?<br /> Author.<br /> VIII.—Proposed Journal for Amateurs.<br /> In reply to the question asked by &quot; Inconnu,&quot;<br /> I am not in the least ashamed to own that I have<br /> several times contributed to amateur magazines<br /> (when I&#039;ve had something to say which no editor<br /> wished to pay for), and that I believe in them.<br /> They have two virtues. In the first place they<br /> give the beginner an opportunity of trying his<br /> pin feathers, and seeing the difference between<br /> handwriting and print, showing how the former<br /> &quot;boils down,&quot; and the value of knowing how to<br /> paragraph effectually; in the second place, they<br /> weed out immature talent from impotent conceit.<br /> They encourage the best and let the worst<br /> down gently. The Arts Monthly, edited by J.<br /> Hannaford Bennett, was the most successful<br /> amateur magazine I have known, often containing<br /> really good things and always entertaining. I<br /> wrote some articles in it which the late Mrs.<br /> Lynn Linton was good enough to praise as<br /> &quot;capital work in the present and full of promise<br /> for the future&quot; (I was quite unknown to her), and<br /> thus I received encouragement through its pages<br /> for which I shall always be grateful. My impres-<br /> sion is that if an amateur monthly could be<br /> started under able editorship, and with some<br /> capital behind, it might be made extremely educa-<br /> tional and financially successful; especially if<br /> criticism of its contents by esteemed authors<br /> could be arranged as a feature. This, I believe,<br /> has never been tried. The amateur magazine<br /> should not be amateurishly managed, as it<br /> generally is, but should be in the hands of well-<br /> qualified persons.<br /> &quot;Inconnu&quot; is right. Three of my novels have<br /> been published by well-known firms in England<br /> and America and one has been translated into<br /> German. I have now seldom any difficulty in<br /> selling what I consider to be my worst work<br /> —that upon which I expend least thought and<br /> pains; and I would advise any writer who wishes<br /> to get on rapidly not to cultivate style or attempt<br /> a psychological study of humanity. A cheap<br /> public likes wading into shallows, and abhors<br /> depths, judging from the stuff one sees on book-<br /> stalls.<br /> This leads me to the article by &quot;N. C,&quot; and I<br /> want to learn where he thinks the country book-<br /> seller is going to put all those less successful works<br /> which at present&quot; decay on warehouse shelves &quot;&#039;(<br /> A bookseller&#039;s shop is generally a stationer&#039;s<br /> shop, and there is never much room in it for<br /> books at all. If a third of the well-known<br /> authors were kept in stock no one would ever get<br /> in at the doors!&quot; Pity &#039;tis, &#039;tis true.&quot; What is to<br /> be done? There seems to be no possible answer.<br /> Mary L. Pendered.<br /> IX.—The Seamy Side.<br /> I have often thought with Mr. Stanhope Sprigs<br /> (see August number) how rarely it is that we<br /> hear anything of the kindness and consideration<br /> of editors and publishers. May I be allowed to<br /> give a brief sketch of my experiences, which, how-<br /> ever, I did not think were at all unusual until I<br /> read the letters on the subject in The Author.<br /> I began to write before I was out of the school-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 96 (#108) #############################################<br /> <br /> 96<br /> THE A UTHOR.<br /> room, and never has any remuneration been<br /> sweeter to me than the modest i0*. paid for my<br /> first attempt—a contribution to Aunt Judy&#039;s<br /> Magazine. This was the opening of a journalistic<br /> career during which I have worked more or less<br /> regularly for between thirty and forty journals<br /> and magazines. Once only have I received my<br /> conge under circumstances other than the dis-<br /> continuance of the publication. In this one case<br /> a &quot;new broom&quot; in the shape of an editor<br /> promptly swept me out, but in the course of a<br /> few months I had the satisfaction of being<br /> recalled with equal promptitude after the depar-<br /> ture of my enemy. The MSS. lost during my<br /> years of work could be counted on the fingers of<br /> one hand, and throughout I have met with<br /> friendship and courtesy from every publisher and<br /> editor with whom I have been brought into con-<br /> stant communication. Once only have I had any<br /> serious difficulty in getting the promised jiay-<br /> ment for work done, and then, thanks to the<br /> Society, all came right in the end. I have been<br /> on the staff of three journals in particular for<br /> six, eight, and eleven years, to another I have<br /> been an occasional contributor for twenty years,<br /> and in neither case have I ever had the slightest<br /> difference of opinion with those in authority. In<br /> my &quot;free-lancing&quot; days editors did not lose, tear,<br /> or dog&#039;s-ear my copy, they did not smear or blot<br /> my drawings, or keep my contributions an un-<br /> reasonable time. I can lay claim to no genius,<br /> merely to business capacity and a love of work.<br /> I have never paid one farthing to get any of my<br /> writings printed or published. Friends tell me I<br /> cannot help being &quot; lucky,&quot; having been born on<br /> a Sunday; but however this may be, certain it is,<br /> if the pessimism of other writers is to be believed<br /> in, that I am as fortunate an author (in a small<br /> way of business) as ever lived. My interest is as<br /> fresh in my work as it was when I first ventured<br /> in fear and trembling to send a MS. to one of the<br /> dreaded race of editors, but then—I am happy in<br /> being able to use my writing as a staff rather than<br /> a crutch. Ellen T. Masters.<br /> X.—Forfeiture of Copyright.<br /> Perhaps my recent experience re the uncer-<br /> tainty of publication in magazines may interest<br /> readers of The Author. Last autumn the<br /> &quot;editress &quot; of a penny weekly wrote saying if I<br /> cared to submit seven stories, about 1200 words<br /> each, she would consider them. I sent in a series<br /> of character sketches, and heard no more about<br /> them till, glancing at the journal for July 2,1 saw<br /> the first story. Five appeared week by week, till<br /> on July 23 the publishers sent me a cheque for<br /> A&#039;1 17s. 6d., with a printed receipt to sign, by<br /> which I discovered I had forfeited my copyright<br /> without any terms having been offered or proofs<br /> sent to revise.<br /> They also enclosed a note saying they would<br /> retain the two last stories until the new editress<br /> decided whether they were to be inserted or not.<br /> Perhaps this is only the usual way of &quot;doing<br /> business&quot; in small journals, but it seems unfair<br /> to insist on an author resigning copyright after the<br /> publication of his MSS. without warning. The<br /> artistic effect of the series was quite spoilt by<br /> the alteration of their insertion, and probably<br /> people will have lost all interest in the characters<br /> by the time the remainder appear, if ever.<br /> E. L. Williams.<br /> BOOK TALE.<br /> AS our list of books in this number shows,<br /> August was a slack month. The holidays,<br /> the heat, and the general lull that inter-<br /> venes before the autumn season begins, all con-<br /> tributed to keep the output of books a very small<br /> one.<br /> A member of this Society has lost, no doubt<br /> through unintentional forgetfulness on the part<br /> of a borrower, vol. 1 of Capt. Gronow&#039;s Remini-<br /> scences aud Recollections. It contains the book-<br /> plate, a peculiar one, of the owner, who would be<br /> greatly obliged by the return of the volume to<br /> the Athenseum Club, Pall Mall.<br /> The event of the past month in the book-<br /> producing world has been the business change<br /> whereby the old publishing firm of Bentley<br /> becomes merged into that of Macmillan.<br /> Messrs. Barnicott and Pearce, Taunton, have<br /> just published an Index to Collinson&#039;s History<br /> of Somerset, edited by the Rev. F. W. Weaver,<br /> M.A., and the Rev. E. H. Bates, M.A., including<br /> a Supplemental Index (Alphabet and Ordinary)<br /> to all the armorial bearings mentioned in the<br /> work, contributed by Lieutenant-Colonel J R.<br /> Bramble, F.S.A. Only 500 copies printed,<br /> 20s. 6d. Large paper edition, of which only 25<br /> copies are printed, 31s. (id. post free. Contains<br /> upwards of 30,000 references.<br /> &quot;Songs of Somerset,&quot; by Joseph Heury Steven-<br /> son, M.A., Rector of Lympsham, and Treasurer<br /> and Prebendary of Wells Cathedral (6*. 6d.,<br /> post free), will be published by the same firm.<br /> Messrs. Blackie will publish &quot;The Skipper:<br /> the Story of an Old Sea-Dog,&quot; a new children&#039;s<br /> story, by Mrs. Edith E. Cutell, whose &quot;Only a<br /> Guard-room Dog &quot; is in a second edition.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 97 (#109) #############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 97<br /> A small volume called &quot;The Theft of the<br /> Princes,&quot; by F. Bayford Harrison, will be pub-<br /> lished in the autumn by the S.P.C.K. The story,<br /> which is historical, is that of a romantic adventure<br /> which happened to an ancestor of the Queen and<br /> of the late Prince Consort.<br /> As we mentioned in the June number, a third<br /> volume of the history of the Blackwood publishing<br /> house is to be published; that is, a volume sup-<br /> plementary to the two written by Mrs. Oliphant.<br /> With it the record will be brought down to com-<br /> paratively recent years. The book will come out<br /> in the autumn.<br /> Jan. 16 next will be the three hundredth anni-<br /> versary of the death of Edmund Spenser, which<br /> occurred in King-street, Westminster.<br /> Prince Demidoff, a well-known European sports-<br /> man, has written a book on Sport in the Caucasus,<br /> which Mr. Rowland Ward will publish in the<br /> autumn.<br /> Mr. Edward Carpenter in his new book<br /> &quot;Angels&#039;Wings&quot; treats of painting, scuJpture,<br /> literature, and music in relation to the changes<br /> they have undergone through growth of the<br /> democratic idea. Nature and Realism; Tradition<br /> and Convention; Wagner; Beethoven and his<br /> Music; Whitman; the Art of Life—are some of<br /> the subjects of Mr. Carpenter&#039;s chapters. The<br /> book will be issued by Messrs. Swan Sonnen-<br /> schein.<br /> Mr. A. B. Rathbone spent fifteen years in the<br /> Malay Peninsula, and is writing a book to be<br /> called &quot;Camping and Tramping in Malaya.&quot;<br /> Count Tolstoy has contributed to the New Aye<br /> a work which he apparently thinks will be his<br /> last message to the world. In his introduction<br /> to the opening chapters the author says:<br /> So that I am urged to what I do, not by wish for gain or<br /> fame, nor by any worldly considerations, but only by fear to<br /> fail in what is required from me by Him who has sent me<br /> into this world, to Whom I am hourly expecting to return.<br /> I, therefore, beg all those who shall read this to follow and<br /> understand my writing, putting aside, as I did, all worldly<br /> considerations, and, holding before them only that eternal<br /> Principle of trnth and right, by whose Will we have come<br /> into the world, whence, as beings in the body, we shall very<br /> soon disappear; without hurry or irritation, let them under-<br /> stand and judge what I say. If they disagree, let them<br /> correct me; not with contempt and hatred, but with pity<br /> and love. If they agree, let them remember that if I speak<br /> trnth, that trnth is not mine, but God&#039;s, and only casually<br /> part of it passes through me, just as it passes every one of<br /> us when we behold truth and transmit it to others.<br /> An edition of Ben Jonson&#039;s celebrated comedy,<br /> &quot;Volpone; or the Foxe&quot; is being published by<br /> Mr. Leonard Smithers, with a cover design, a<br /> frontispiece in line, and five initial letters, deco-<br /> rative and illustrative, reproduced from pencil<br /> drawings by the late Mr. Aubrey Beardsley.<br /> A reviewer in the Daily Chronicle the other<br /> day remarked on the number of misprints to be<br /> met with in books nowadays. &quot;We notice these<br /> trifles,&quot; said the writer &quot; because it seems to us<br /> that there is a growing tendency towards careless<br /> proof-reading in some of our best printing offices.<br /> We could name more than one series of popular<br /> reprints at present on the market which are<br /> rendered almost valueless to the student by their<br /> abounding errors of the press.&quot;<br /> Mrs. Alathea Weil has written a work of<br /> Italian history, &quot;The Romance of the House of<br /> Savoy,&quot; which is to be published in two volumes<br /> by Messrs. Putnam.<br /> &quot;Legends of the Saints,&quot; in original verse, by<br /> the Rev. G. R. Woodward, of St. Barnabas<br /> Church, Pimlico, will be published shortly by<br /> Messrs. Kegan Paul.<br /> The next volume in the Gadshill edition of<br /> Dickens, published by Messre. Chapman and<br /> Hall, will contain &quot; Hard Times,&quot; &quot; A Holiday<br /> Romance,&quot; &quot;Hunted Down,&quot; and &quot; George Silver-<br /> man&#039;s Explanation,&quot; with new illustrations by<br /> Mr. Maurice Greiffenhagen.<br /> An edition of the &quot;Rowley Poems&quot; of<br /> Chatterton has been prepared by Mr. Robert<br /> Steele, and will be published by Messrs. Hacon<br /> and Ricketts. The text is founded on the first<br /> edition by Tyrwhitt in 1777, compared with the<br /> firsts of previously printed poems, and with such<br /> of the reputed originals as exist.<br /> Miss Hewlett, of the C.E.Z.N.S., for many<br /> years superintendent of St. Catherine&#039;s Hospital,<br /> Amritsar, in the Panjab, and well known in this<br /> country as a gifted speaker on missionary topics,<br /> has in the press a new work entitled, &quot;They<br /> shall see His Face: Stories of God&#039;s Grace in<br /> Work among the Blind and others in India.&quot;<br /> The book will be uniform with the author&#039;s<br /> previous works, &quot; Daughters of the King,&quot; &quot; The<br /> Wellspring of Immortality,&quot; &quot; None of Self,&quot; &amp;c.,<br /> and will be illustrated with thirteen full-page<br /> illustrations from original photographs. Its<br /> publishers will be Messrs. Alden and Co., of the<br /> Boeardo Press, Oxford, and its price will be 3s. 6d.<br /> Mr. Robert Cromie&#039;s new story, originally<br /> called &quot;The Uncharted Island,&quot; has been<br /> changed, the title having been claimed by<br /> another author. This affords another instance<br /> of the present unsatisfactory method of regis-<br /> tering book names. Mr. Cromie&#039;s story will now<br /> be published with the name, &quot; The Lost Liner.&quot;<br /> A chatty volume of light essays, with the rather<br /> curious title of &quot;Nothing Personal,&quot; will be<br /> issued by Messrs. J. Baker and Son in their<br /> Square series of is. books in September. It is<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 98 (#110) #############################################<br /> <br /> 98<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> by Ralph Harold Bretherton, a West of England<br /> journalist.<br /> Mr. Thomas Hardy&#039;s new volume of collected<br /> stories, and Mr. William Black&#039;s new romance of<br /> the Highlands, are among early publications.<br /> The latter, however, will appear first. The story<br /> of &quot;Wild Eelin&quot; is exceedingly romantic, and<br /> has a very tragic and (to the reader) unexpected<br /> ending.<br /> Mr. Grant Allen&#039;s new story is about a<br /> Tyrolese peasant who becomes a great singer, and<br /> the novelist has given it the title of &quot; Linnet.&quot;<br /> Mr. Grant Richards will publish it very soon.<br /> Venice is the subject of the next volume in Mr.<br /> Allen&#039;s series of Guide Books. It will be out<br /> this month.<br /> The biography of the late Duchess of Teck may<br /> not now appear until next spring. It is being<br /> written by Mr. C. Kinlock Cooke, and is based<br /> on the private diaries and letters of the Duchess.<br /> Mr. Murray is publisher.<br /> Mr. Edwin A. Pratt has written a biography<br /> of Mrs. Gladstone, entitled &quot;Catherine Glad-<br /> stone: Her Life, Good Works, and Political<br /> Efforts.&quot; He has done it with the approval of<br /> the family. Mr. Pratt is already the author of<br /> &quot;Pioneer Women in Victoria&#039;s Reign.&quot; Messrs.<br /> Sampson Low will issue the new book imme-<br /> diately.<br /> A volume of poems by Sir. W. B. Yeats and<br /> one by Mr. Henry Newbolt are promised for this<br /> autumn.<br /> Mr. Andrew Balfour, author of a historical<br /> romance which appeared a year ago, called &quot;By<br /> Stroke of Sword,&quot; is bringing out a new romance<br /> of the 1715 Rebellion.<br /> Mr. W. Pett Ridge&#039;s story &quot; Mord Em&#039;ly &quot; has<br /> run its course in To-Day, and will be published<br /> in volume form this month (Pearson). It is<br /> about a South London girl&#039;s early life.<br /> Mr. Felix Moscheles is bringing out a second<br /> instalment of his reminiscences. The first was<br /> principally about the late George Du Maurier.<br /> In the forthcoming book Mr. Moscheles will go<br /> back to his boyhood in England and Germany.<br /> His father was a distinguished musician, and<br /> Mendelssohn was one of the figures in his circle.<br /> Another artist who is writing reminiscences is<br /> Mr. G. A. Storey. He knew Dickens and many<br /> other interesting people. Paris and Spain are as<br /> open books to him. His work—with, of course,<br /> pictures — will be called &quot;Sketches from<br /> Memory.&quot;<br /> Australian bush stories, by Mr. William S.<br /> Walker, under the title of &quot;When the Mopoke<br /> Calls,&quot; will be published in a volume by Mr.<br /> John Long. Mr. Walker is an Australian, and<br /> nephew to Rolf Boldrewood.<br /> London life is the theme of Mr. G. B. Burgin&#039;s<br /> new book, to be published shortly by Messrs.<br /> Pearson. &quot;Settled out of Court &quot; is the title. A<br /> new serial by Mr. Burgin is being published,<br /> which is called &quot;The Hermits of Gray&#039;s Inn,&quot;<br /> and tells of a band of old schoolfellows, who,<br /> being jilted, vowed to cut off their lives from<br /> feminine influences. There is a defaulter, how-<br /> ever; he marries and is cast out, and on his<br /> death-bed he works out a scheme for the redemp-<br /> tion of his old friends.<br /> Professor Dill, of Queen&#039;s College, Belfast, has<br /> completed an account of Roman society during<br /> the last century of the Western Empire. It will<br /> be published during the autumn by Messrs. Mac-<br /> millan. Mr. Herbert Fisher, Fellow and Tutor<br /> of New College, Oxford, has also finished, after<br /> labouring at it for some years, a work dealing<br /> with the Mediaeval Empire, and the same firm<br /> will publish it.<br /> &quot;Joan the Curate&quot; is the title of Miss Florence<br /> Warden&#039;s new novel, which Messrs. Chatto and<br /> Windus will have ready on the 15th.<br /> Sixpenny editions are extending to boys&#039; books.<br /> This month Messrs. Sampson Low will bring out<br /> Mr. Henty&#039;s &quot;Jack Archer: a Tale of the<br /> Crimea,&quot; and Mr. Kingston&#039;s &quot;With Axe and<br /> Rifle,&quot; at the popular price.<br /> Novels about to appear include the following:<br /> —&quot;A Tragedy in Marble,&quot; by Mr. Adam<br /> Lilburn; &quot;The Church of Humanity,&quot; by Mr.<br /> David Christie Murray; &quot;The Sireu&#039;s Web,&quot; a<br /> romance of London society, by Annie Thomas;<br /> and &quot;Mrs. Carmichael&#039;s Goddesses,&quot; by Sarah<br /> Tytler, all to come from Chatto and Windus.<br /> &quot;A Drama in Sunshine,&quot; by Mr. Horace A.<br /> Vachell; &quot;Michael Gargrave,&quot; by Mrs. Riddell;<br /> and &quot; Off the High Road,&quot; by Miss Eleanor C.<br /> Price, will be published by Messrs. Bentley.<br /> A new edition of FitzGerald&#039;s translation of<br /> the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam is to be issued<br /> by Messrs. Macmillan, with decorations by Mr.<br /> W. B. Macdougall. There is still much knock-<br /> ing at Messrs. Macmillan&#039;s door for a cheap<br /> edition of the classic, such as the United States<br /> possesses two or three times over. Many poor<br /> lovers of the Persian poet turn envious eyes to<br /> the realms of book piracy.<br /> Mr. Richard Marsh&#039;s novel, &quot;Ada Vernham,<br /> Actress,&quot; will be published by Mr. John Long<br /> this month.<br /> &quot;P. P. C.&quot; is the title of Mrs. B. M. Croker&#039;s<br /> new novel, which Messrs. Chatto will publish. It<br /> has run serially in the weekly edition of the Times.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 99 (#111) #############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 99<br /> A work on the native tribes of Central Austra-<br /> lia is shortly to appear, from the pens of Pro-<br /> fessor Baldwin Spencer, of the University of<br /> Melbourne, and Mr. F. J. Gillen, special magis-<br /> trate and sub-inspector of the aborigines of<br /> South Australia. Messrs. Macmillan are the<br /> publishers.<br /> Miss Kingsley, the traveller, is preparing her<br /> expected volume of &quot; West African Studies&quot; for<br /> publication by Messrs. Macmillan.<br /> Sir Walter Besant&#039;s articles on South London,<br /> which have run in the Pall Mall Magazine for<br /> a number of months, will be published shortly in<br /> a volume, with considerable additions and many<br /> illustrations, by Messrs. Chatto and Windus.<br /> Dr. G. H. Oarwin, the Plumian Professor of<br /> Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy at<br /> Cambridge, is publishing a new book through<br /> Mr. Murray, entitled &quot;The Tides and Kindred<br /> Phenomena.&quot;<br /> Professor Ridgeway, of Cambridge, has written<br /> a work entitled &quot;The Early Age of Greece.&quot;<br /> which is almost ready.<br /> Natural history is again engaging the pen of<br /> Mr. Richard Kearton. It will be written in a<br /> &#039;•popular&quot; vein. Mr. Kearton was in the<br /> Shetland Isles lately, and, with his brother,<br /> succeeded in finding and photographing a rara<br /> avis—the great skua. The last pair of phalarope,<br /> or wading birds, had, however, been shot just<br /> before Mr. Kearton&#039;s visit.<br /> A novel laid in Parma during the insurrec-<br /> tionary days of 1831 was left in manuscript by<br /> the late Antonio Gallenga of the Times. The<br /> author&#039;s own reminiscences contribute to the<br /> story, which Messrs. Smith, Elder, and Co. are to<br /> bring out.<br /> Mr. Savage Lindor&#039;s record of his interesting<br /> and awful experiences in Thibet, in two volumes,<br /> published by Mr. Heinemann, may be out next<br /> month.<br /> A collected edition of Tennyson&#039;s works is pro-<br /> jected by Messrs. Macmillan. Each volume will<br /> be I2.v. 6rf. net, and there are to be a dozen. A<br /> thousand copies will be printed for England.<br /> The volumes will appear at the rate of one per<br /> mouth, beginning October.<br /> The house to which Shelley went in Wales, and<br /> where he received Harriet Westbrook&#039;s doleful<br /> letters, is reported to be on the eve of disappear-<br /> ing. It is called Cwm Elan, and its situation<br /> is the Elan Valley, from which Birmingham is<br /> drawing its new water supply. Literary associa-<br /> tions, therefore, are once more being swept away<br /> by the heavy hand of the engineer.<br /> Mr. A. G. Bradley has written the text for a<br /> volume on &quot;Highways and Byways of North<br /> Wales,&quot; which will be illustrated by Mr. Joseph<br /> Pennell and Mr. Hugh Thompson. The pub-<br /> lishers of it, Messrs. Macmillan, have also in<br /> preparation volumes dealing in a similar style<br /> with Yorkshire and the North of Ireland.<br /> The Dome will be converted from a quarterly<br /> to a monthly magazine on Oct. 1. Among the<br /> contributors to the next number are Mr. Stephen<br /> Phillips, Mr. W. B. Yeats, and Mr. Lawrence<br /> Binvon.<br /> THE BOOKS OF THE MONTH.<br /> [July 25 to August 23.—165 Books.]<br /> Ac Ia ml, Sir H. W. Medical Missions in their Relation to Oxford.<br /> 1/- Frowde-.<br /> Alan-a-dale. Friend and Foe: Story of a Methodist Soldier. 1/6.<br /> Kelly.<br /> Anonymous. The Chamberlain Birthday Rook. 16. Arrowsmith.<br /> Anonymous. Quern&#039;s English (?) Up to Date, 1&#039;- Epicun- Office^<br /> Anonymous (author of &quot; For Love of Marjone &#039;&#039;). Sweotbrier. 1/6.<br /> Stevens-<br /> Anonymous (A. S.) Women of Sacred History. 3/6. Skefflng&#039;on.<br /> Anonymous (Mother and Daughter). Gleanings of Cookery.<br /> 2/6 net. iJax.<br /> Ashworth, J. R. Introductory Course of Practical Chemistry and<br /> Electricity. 2/6 net. Whittaker.<br /> Beale, D.; Soulaby, L.; Dove, J. F. Work and Play in Girls&#039;<br /> Schools. 7/6 Longmans.<br /> Begeer. B. W. The Metallurgy of Gold on the Rand. 5/ net. Low.<br /> Bernaul, J, H., and Atkinson, Professor (eds.) The Irish Liber<br /> Hymnorum. The Henry Bradshaw Society.<br /> Berry, Grace I. Iscah: a Tale for the Times. 3/6 net. Banks.<br /> Bingham, 0. Jingle*, Jokes, and Funny folks. 1 - Nister.<br /> Bird, Charles. A School Geography. 2 6 net Whittaker.<br /> Blashill, T. Lessons from Kire and Panic. I/- Brit. Fire Prev.<br /> Committee.<br /> Bollinger. 0. Atlas and Essentials of Pathological Anatomy. 2&quot;i/-<br /> Bs Illier&amp;.<br /> Boulenger, G. A. The T*illess Batrachians of Europe. Part. II.<br /> The Ray Society.<br /> Bowman, Anne. The New Cookery Book. 1/6. Routledge.<br /> Braddon. M. E. In High Places. 6/- Hutchinson.<br /> Brown, Horatio F. (ed.) Calendar of State Papers and MSS. rela-<br /> ting to English Affairs preserved in the Archives of Venice.<br /> Vol. IX. 1592-1603. Eyre and Spottiswoodo.<br /> Burden, Sir He nry The Effects of the Diamond Jubllee on the<br /> Resources of Voluntary Churities. I/- Seiontitlc Press.<br /> Burleigh, Bennet. Sirdar and Khalifa. l&gt;/6 Chapman.<br /> Butler, Dom. C. Lau&amp;iac History of Palladius. 7/6 net. Clay.<br /> Cameron, Mrs. Lovett The Ways of a Widow. 6/- White.<br /> Cantab. Cuba. Nemesis: a Poem. 1/- net. Simpkin.<br /> Carter, Letitia, A Life&#039;s Victory. 3/6. Partridge.<br /> Cary, 0. The Man who Feared God for Nought 2/- Stock.<br /> Caws, L. W. The Unrecognised Stranger and other Sermons. \i G<br /> net. Allenson.<br /> Cballacombe, W. A. Bond and Free. 2/- Stock.<br /> Charles, J. F. A Statesman&#039;s Chance. 6/- Constable.<br /> Chesney, W. The Adventures of an Engineer. 3/6. Bow den<br /> Chreiman, M. A. Health Loss and Gain. No. 1. 2,6 net. Rebman.<br /> Christian, E. V. B. (ed.). The Light Side of Cricket. 2/ii. Bowden.<br /> Cbristic, O. F. Licensing Practice (Retail Sales). 6/6 net.<br /> Richards.<br /> Clare, Father (ed ). Life of Julie Billiart. 4 - net. Art and Book Co.<br /> Clark, J. W. Concise Guide to Town and University of i&#039;amhridge.<br /> 1. - net Macmlll in and Bowes.<br /> Clarke, Cosmo. Sorely Tried. 2/6. Dbjby.<br /> Clarke, Sir G. S. Rnssta&#039;s Sea Power, Past and Present 6/-<br /> Murray.<br /> Clymer, W. B. S. (ed.) Selections from the Writings of Walter<br /> Savage Landor. 4/6. Arnold.<br /> Coielli, Marie; Joune. Lady; Steel, Flora Annie; Countess of<br /> Malmesbury. The Modern Marriage Market. 2/- Hutchinson.<br /> Cowley, A. E. (ed.) Collins&#039;s Translation of Kautzsch&#039;s edition of<br /> Gesenlus&#039; Hebrow Grammar. 21/- Frowde.<br /> Croker, B. M. Peggy of the Bartons.&#039; 6/- Methuen.<br /> Crook, James W. German Wage Theories. 4/- P S. King.<br /> Cuthbertson, E. J, Tennyson: the Story of his Life. 1 - Chambers.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 100 (#112) ############################################<br /> <br /> :oo<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Darwin, L. iQuestions to be considered by Indian Currency Com-<br /> mittee. 1/- Stanford.<br /> Davidson, Lillias C. Hints to Lady Travellers. 1/- net. Iliffe.<br /> Daw, W. H. The Care of Consumptives. 1/- Scientific Press.<br /> D&#039;Esterre-Keeling, Elsa. The Queen&#039;s Serf. 67- Unwin.<br /> Dibdin, W. J. The Purification of Sewage and Water. 21/- net.<br /> Sanitary Publishing Co<br /> Dilworth, W J. A New Sequel to Euclid. Part L 1 - Blackie.<br /> Dobree. L. E stories on the Rosary. Part II. 1 &#039;6, Longmina.<br /> Drybrough. T. B. Polo. 15 - net Vinton.<br /> Eagleson, J. G. Digest or Australian Mining Cases. 40/- Sweet.<br /> Earwaker, the late J. P. History of the uhureh and (&#039;arish of St<br /> Mar.-on-the-Hill, Chester. Printed by Love and Wyman.<br /> Fair lie, J. A. Centralization of administration in N. Y St*te. 4-<br /> P. S. King.<br /> Ford, Paul Leicester. The Story of an untold Love. 6/- Constable<br /> Praser-Mackintosh, C An Account of the Confederation of Clan<br /> Chattan, Its Kith and Kin Glasgow: John Macbay.<br /> .Gadow, H. A Classification of Vertebrata, Recent and Extinct 3 6<br /> net. Black.<br /> Gallon, Tom Dicky Monteith: a Love Story. 6 - Hutchinson.<br /> Garvice, 0, Just a Girl. 3/6 Bowden.<br /> Gibbf, L. R. (ed.) &quot;The Rime of the Ancient Mariner&quot; 1 -6. Arnold.<br /> Gladden, Washington. England and America 6d. Clarke.<br /> Glasgow, G. R. Doctor Dicky, and other Stories. 1 - Nister.<br /> Gould, G. M. A Pocket Medic*I Dictionary. 2/6 net. Lewis<br /> Graham, R. H. C. Aurora La Cujinl. 5/ - net. Smlthers<br /> Gras, Fe*lix (tr. by C. A. Janvier). The Terror. 3,6. Heinemann.<br /> Greenwood G. (ed.) A Selection of the Letters of the late John Walter<br /> Lea. with memoir. 7/6. Church Printing Co.<br /> Griffith, G. The Destined Maid. 6- White.<br /> Griffiths, Arthur. A Girl of Grit 2,6. Milne.<br /> Hardy, W J. (ed.) Calendar of State Papers, Domestic Series, Mav<br /> l6&#039;Kl—Oct 1691. Preserved in Public Record Office. Eyro and<br /> Spottiswoode.<br /> Harris, Reader. The Case Against Atheism. 1 - H. Marshall.<br /> Harrison, A. H. Christ and Our Own Time 2/6. Skeffington.<br /> Hawkins, Battie. New Wine: New Bottles, 6- Digby.<br /> Hayward, H. (ed.) Bismarck. By a Fellow Student 1 - Dean.<br /> Hellyer. M. Maud. Idylls. 2/6. Digby.<br /> Heron, E. and H. Tammers&#039; Duel 2,6 Pearson.<br /> Hocking, Silas K. The Culture of Manhood. 1 - H. Marshall<br /> Holmes, Eleanor. Life&#039;s Fitful Fever. 6/- Hurst.<br /> Hope, Anthony. Rupert of Uentzau 6/- Arrowsmith.<br /> Hoyer, M.A. Little Miss Bo-peep, •fcc. 1/- Nister.<br /> Hudson, A, A., and Inman. A. The Law of Light and Air. 6/-<br /> F. N. Wilson.<br /> Hume, F. The Clock Struck One. 3/6. Warne.<br /> Hyndraan, H. Francis. Radiation. (Electromagnetic). 6/-<br /> Sonnenpcheln.<br /> Inglis, H. R. G. Contour Road Book of England: South-East<br /> Division. 2&#039;-net Gall,<br /> lnnes, J. J. McL. Sir Henry Lawrence, the Pacificator. 3/6.<br /> FYowde.<br /> James, Henry. In the Cage 3/6. Duckworth.<br /> Janleot, Dr. J. Health-Giving Waters. (Of Pougues). 3/6. Bli*s.<br /> Jeaffreson, H. H. The Holy Eucharist. 2/6. Skeffington.<br /> Jen kin son, A. and Emile J. Fiona Mclver. 6/- Hutchinson.<br /> Jerome, J. K. Second Thoughts of an Idle Fellow. 6/- Hurst.<br /> Jocelyn, Mrs. Miss Rayburn&#039;s Diamonds. 6/- White.<br /> Johns, O. H W. (ed.) Assyrian Deeds and Documents Recording the<br /> Transfer of Property, Ac., chieHy of the 7th Century M.C. Vol. I.<br /> Cuneiform Texts. 21 net Bell.<br /> Johnston, M. C. The Justice of the Peace; Digest of Cases reported<br /> during 1893—1897 inclusive 7/6. Shaw.<br /> Jones, H. M. Asepsis and Antisepsis in Abdominal Surgery and<br /> Gynaecology. 3/ net. Bailliere.<br /> Kenyon E. 0. The Cave by the Waterfall, Ac.. 2 - S. S. Union.<br /> Kerr, Richard. Wireless Telegraphy. 1/6. Seeley.<br /> Lacey, T. A. Liturgical Interpolations, (Alcuin Club Tract). 3/-<br /> Longmans.<br /> Lahmann, Dr. H. Natural Hygiene. 4/6. , Sonnenschein.<br /> Lee, 0. A. J. Among British Birds in their Nesting Haunts. Part<br /> 12. 10 6 net. Douglas.<br /> Legge, T. M., and Sessions, H. Cattle Tuberculosis. 2 6 net<br /> Batllure.<br /> Loftie, W. J. Kensington Palace. Farmer and Sons.<br /> Lyde. L. W. Geography of the British Isles. 1/- net Black.<br /> Lydekker, R. The Deer of All Hands. 1M/- Rowland Ward.<br /> Macllwalne, H. C. Dinkinbar. 0/- Constable.<br /> McLean, D. H., and Grenfell, W. H. Rowing, Punting and Punts.<br /> 1/- Lawrence.<br /> Macleod, H. D. Indian Currency. 2,6 net. Longmans.<br /> Mailing, Matilda (tr. by A. Molboe). A Romance of the First Consul.<br /> 6/- Heiremann.<br /> Manders, H. The Ferment Treatment of Cancer and Tuberculosis.<br /> 10/6. Bebman.<br /> Markham, C. Handbook to Foreign Hall Marks on Gold and Silver<br /> Plate. Hj- Gibblngs.<br /> Marryat. Florence, and others. Summer Holidays: Stories and<br /> Sketches. 1/- Greening.<br /> Mayer, S. The Law of Agricultural Holdings, 5/- Waterlow.<br /> Middleton, J. G. The X Rays : Their Use in Medical and Surgical<br /> Practice. 1/- Simpkin.<br /> Miles, W. Off your Bikes! 1/- B. E. Taylor.<br /> Mitchell, J. How to Gain the Eve of the Young. 2/6. Partridge.<br /> Moncrieff. Major G. K. Scott The Principles of Structural Design.<br /> Part II Chatham: Royal Engineers&#039; Institute.<br /> Morgan, A. Elementary Physiography treated Experimentally. 2 6.<br /> Longmans.<br /> Mozley-Stork, A. The Duties of an Arhitrator under the Workmen&#039;s<br /> Compensation Act 1897. 5/- Steven*.<br /> Murison, A F. Sir William Willaee. 2/6 Oliphant.<br /> Murray, D. A. An Elementary Course in the Integral Calculus. &#039;67-<br /> Longmans.<br /> Newth, G. S. A Manual of Chemical Analysis. 6/6. Longmans.<br /> Nichols in, G. Fifty Years in South Africa 6/- W. W. Greener.<br /> Norman, A. W. Death Duty Tables. 7,6. Clowes.<br /> O&#039;Brien I*. R. Solicitors&#039; Book-keeping. 7/6 Sweet.<br /> Orchard, Oliver. Poems Wilson and Macmillan.<br /> Oxen hum. John. God&#039;* Prisoner. 6/- Hurst.<br /> Penrose, Mrs. H. H. The Modern Gospel. 61- Constable.<br /> Piggott, F. T. Two Chapters in the Law of Torts. 16. Clowes.<br /> Pigott, B. A F. Flowers and Ferns of Cromer. 1/- Jarrold.<br /> Piper, E., and Page, J. LI. W. The Church Towers of Somerset.<br /> Parts IV. and V. 12/6 each Bristol: Frnst and Reed<br /> Ranjitsinhji, Prince. With Stoddart&#039;s Team in Australia. 2-<br /> Bowden.<br /> Roundell, Mrs. Practical Cookery Book. 7/6 net Bickers.<br /> Russell, Henry P. Cyril Westward. Art and Book Co.<br /> Salisbury, Bishop of. Considerations on Public Worship and on th^<br /> Ministry of Penitence. 1- Longmans.<br /> Sanderson, Edgar. The British Empire in the 19lh Ccnturv. Vol. VI.<br /> »/- &quot;Blackie.<br /> Sengavent. Katieballe&#039;s Voyage. 2/6. Marshall and Russell.<br /> Sheldon, C. M. In His Steps&quot;: What would Jesus Do V 3/6. Allenson.<br /> Simms, G. E. Butterflies, Moths, and Caterpillars. 1 - Dean.<br /> Smith, F. H. Caleb West, Master Diver. 6/- Constable.<br /> Speight, H. Chronicles and Stories of Old Bingley. Stock.<br /> Standing Percy Cross (ed.) Cricketers&#039;Birthday Book. 2- Dent.<br /> Storr. Francis (ed.). Selections from Tatne. 1/6. Blackie<br /> Symons, G. J.,ana Wallis, H. S. British iainfali. 1897. 10.- Stanford.<br /> Thackeray, W. M. Sketch Books With Biographical Introduction<br /> by Mrs. Ritchie. 6/- Smith and Elder.<br /> Tolstoy, Leo (tr. by V. Tchertkoff . The Christian Teaching. 1 -<br /> H. Mirshall<br /> Tottenham, Blanche L. In the Shidow of the Three. 6/- Hutchinson.<br /> Trench, Major F Manoeuvre Orders. 1/- Clowes.<br /> Tuck, U. The Hour before Communion. 2/6. Marshall Bros.<br /> Tuton, A. E. A Compensated Dilatometer. 3/- Dulau.<br /> Various writers. Memories of the Summer Sea. 6d. Castlo and<br /> Lamb.<br /> Vaughan, Father Bernard. The Woman that was a Sinner. 1 -<br /> Longmans.<br /> Veitch, R. Willow Leaves. (Verse ) 2 6 net. Unicorn Press.<br /> Vivaria, Kassendra. VU Lucis 6/- Heinemann.<br /> Walker, Charles E. Old Flies in New Dresses. 5/- net Lawrence.<br /> Weatherly, F. E., and others. Little Rhymes for Merry Times. 1/-<br /> Nister.<br /> Weatherley, F. E., and Askwith, G. R Lays for Little Ones. 5/-<br /> Ricordi.<br /> Weed, Clarence Moores. Seed Travellers. 1/6. 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Constable.<br /> THE AUTHOR.&quot;<br /> SCALE FOR ADVERTISEMENTS.<br /> £4 0<br /> 3 0<br /> 1 10 -<br /> 0 15 o<br /> 0 7 S<br /> per inch 0 6 n<br /> per 2000 3 0 o<br /> Reductions made for a Series of Six or Twelve Insertions.<br /> All letters respecting Advertisements should be addressed to the<br /> Advertisement Manages, The Author Office, 4, Portugal-street, W.O.<br /> Front Page<br /> Other Pages<br /> Half of a Page<br /> Quarter of a Page<br /> Eighth of a Page<br /> Single Column Advertisements<br /> Bills for Insertion	https://historysoa.com/files/original/5/320/1898-09-01-The-Author-9-4.pdf	publications, The Author
321	https://historysoa.com/items/show/321	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 05 (October 1898)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+05+%28October+1898%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 05 (October 1898)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1898-10-01-The-Author-9-5					101–124																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1898-10-01">1898-10-01</a>							5			18981001	tTbe Hutbor,<br /> {The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. 5.] OCTOBER i, 1898. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of poet, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only. . ^<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOB sorne years it has been the practice to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot;General Con-<br /> eiderations,&quot; Warnings, Notdoes,&amp;c., for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to carry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amonnt of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both sides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures oonnected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers oan also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true : but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will bo their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chanoe of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a oommon law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author mar<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> L 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 102 (#114) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> i. &quot;JT^VEBY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> I&#039;J advice upon his agreements, his choioe of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advice<br /> sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions conneoted with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Sooiety first—our solicitors are oontinually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudulent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that yon may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Sooiety now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Sooiety or not, are invited to-<br /> communicate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Seoretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, &amp;c.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of oourse they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanced 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> oorrect: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of course, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practiwe this method of swelling their own profits call it-<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6s. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> The Editor is always glad to receive short papers and<br /> communications on all subjects connected with literature<br /> from members and others. Nothing can do more good to<br /> the Society than to make The Author complete, attractive,<br /> and interesting. Will those who are willing to aid in this<br /> work send their names and the special subjects on which<br /> they are willing to write t<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I.—Personal Experiences.<br /> 1.<br /> IT occurs to me that some of your readers may<br /> be interested in a true story of publication<br /> within my own experience.<br /> About a quarter of a century ago I entered<br /> into an agreement with a well-known London<br /> publisher, who undertook to bear the expenses of<br /> a small book, and to pay me half the profits. It<br /> was a very unpretending book, but there was<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 103 (#115) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> supposed to be a reasonable prospect of selling<br /> it.<br /> At the end of the year in which it was pub-<br /> lished I duly received an account of it, by which<br /> it appeared that the number of copies sold was<br /> insufficient to produce a profit. Each succeeding<br /> year a similar account came in, and each time the<br /> debt against the book grew somewhat smaller.<br /> A fair number of copies were sold, but the<br /> charges for binding and advertisements invariably<br /> went near to neutralising the profits made by<br /> sales.<br /> At last, after about thirteen years, the scale<br /> was just turned. All the copies were sold out,<br /> and the profits were equally divided. My share<br /> .came to about a guinea; and of course the pub-<br /> lisher&#039;s share came to the same amount.<br /> With this result I was prepared to rest satisfied.<br /> No harm had come of the experiment; and though<br /> the profits, amounting to about is. Sd. a year,<br /> were not magnificent, still it was all so much to<br /> the good.<br /> Much to my astonishment, the publisher took<br /> a, very different view. He was quite anxious for<br /> a second edition, and represented that the cost of<br /> reprinting would be less, and the sale would<br /> probably improve.<br /> It seemed to me not worth the while, and I<br /> gave it as my decided opinion that the result<br /> would be much the same as before. However,<br /> I was overruled, and consented to repeat the<br /> «xperiment.<br /> The result showed that I was quite right. The<br /> Accounts have come in yearly in the old style,<br /> though the expenses, instead of being less, were<br /> somewhat greater. At present the book has only<br /> been on sale for eleven years, so that some years<br /> must still elapse before we can expect to have<br /> anything to divide. And, as far as I can calcu-<br /> late from the latest accounts, I think that, when<br /> the edition comes to an end, we stand to lose<br /> the guinea which the first edition so successfully<br /> achieved.<br /> The conclusion which I feel compelled to draw<br /> is this, viz., that some of our publishers really<br /> know very little about business. I cannot but<br /> think that, in this case, I could have done quite<br /> as well myself. To sell two editions of a book in<br /> more than a quarter of a century, and to make<br /> nothing by it after all, seems a very poor<br /> performance. Walter W. Sxeat.<br /> ii.<br /> Since you have done me the honour of thinking<br /> that my experiences with publishers would be of<br /> interest and profit to our brothers and sisters &quot; in<br /> arms,&quot; I shall briefly relate them.<br /> First of all let me echo the first half of the<br /> letter of the New York paper quoted in the<br /> September issue of The Author (p 86, col. 2),<br /> and sincerely repeat my own thanks to the founder<br /> of the Society and Editor of The Author, as well<br /> as to the Secretary, whose kind and prompt<br /> assistance have for the last four or five years been<br /> a constant guide to me, and whose suggestions I<br /> have always endeavoured to realise, though, I<br /> must admit, only with partial success.<br /> This restriction is necessary, for one of our<br /> tenets (with the royalty system) is an examina-<br /> tion of accounts by an authorised lawyer; to this<br /> condition neither I nor any author-friend of mine<br /> have ever found a publisher to consent.* The<br /> reasons given are always the same: &quot;Self-<br /> respect,&quot; &quot;pride,&quot; &quot;never done,&quot; &quot;suspicion of<br /> dishonesty,&quot; &quot;no one likes his accounts to be<br /> pried into by a lawyer,&quot; &lt;fcc. These objections, I<br /> need hardly say, are valueless. Has one ever<br /> heard of a concern in which one partner has no<br /> right to have an audit of the accounts of the<br /> joint business? Some publishers make a show<br /> of conceding the letter of our demand for an<br /> &quot;examination of accounts &quot;; they say that they<br /> have no objection to an author seeing their books,<br /> that these books are always at his disposal. Of<br /> course.<br /> Of what use is it to show accounts to a<br /> man to whom a simple sum is pain, and whose<br /> total yearly arithmetical practice probably con-<br /> sists in the addition of marks at the end of each<br /> term—when he does not get one of his boys to do<br /> it! I know that all authors are not so dull; but<br /> even if an author is shown the book concerning<br /> his works, of what use is that ?—it is the books<br /> concerning the printer of these works, those that<br /> will show whether the number of copies printed<br /> tallies with that accounted for in the royalty.<br /> In fact, I would go further, and say, with due<br /> deference to our Secretary, that the whole system<br /> of examination of accounts as at present suggested,<br /> is nugatory.<br /> Why should not a publisher have a livre d<br /> serrure, not for secret lost words, but for another<br /> pichi mignon? What can prevent his having a<br /> book for extra copies or extra editions?<br /> Of course, this would be dishonest; but an old,<br /> large, and respected firm has been found out<br /> paying royalty on zod. instead of 11rf! When<br /> an old, large, and respectable firm stoops to this<br /> infinitesimal swindling, I think authors may well<br /> feel suspicious. Again, an old friend who has<br /> had a life-long experience of authorship, a man<br /> whose name is well known to all who have been to<br /> school, who is an old man, and ought to be rich<br /> * I am speaking of the publication of school-books only,<br /> which alone haa oome under my observation.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 104 (#116) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> (but is not), when asked as to the best mode of<br /> publishing said to me sadly: &quot;My dear friend,<br /> whichever way you publish you will be swindled.<br /> It is a remarkable fact, but a fact, that books<br /> published on the &#039;lump sum down &#039; system run<br /> through a large number of editions, whereas<br /> those on the royalty system always run very<br /> slowly.&quot; The conclusion he left to me.<br /> To take the case theoretically, is it, humanly<br /> speakiDg, likely or even possible that a man who<br /> is irresponsible, and absolutely safe against<br /> detection, should give over to another a large<br /> sum due to him, when, first, he knows the<br /> latter to be totally ignorant of the amount, and<br /> to be in the impossibility of finding out; when,<br /> secondly, a small one does just as well; and<br /> when, thirdly, there are sundry excuses such as<br /> &quot;office expenses,&quot; &quot;advertising,&quot; &amp;c., to salve our<br /> qualms of conscience? After all, does not a<br /> publisher want the money more f He has his wife&#039;s<br /> carriage to keep up, his retinue of servants, his<br /> sons at Eton and Harrow, his yacht; and all these<br /> expenses are very heavy. As to the poor author,<br /> what does he want the money for? He has no<br /> wants; if he is cold, he can wrap his rug round<br /> his legs!<br /> Seriously speaking, there are in the royalty<br /> system only two safeguards possible, to my mind.<br /> One is old; it was mentioned as possible last year<br /> in The Author. It consists in exacting that every<br /> authentic copy bear the signature of both author<br /> and publisher. This was actually carried out by<br /> my father from 1850 to 1870 for his dictionary,<br /> and I can remember piles and piles of books<br /> arriving to be stamped by him and his secretary.<br /> This labour many authors would now shrink<br /> from, but there seems to me to be an alternative.<br /> It would consist simply in this, that, in the agree-<br /> ment, a clause be added to the effect that the<br /> printer should be instructed to print not a single<br /> copy without the joint signature of author and<br /> publisher.<br /> As it is, the printer receives orders from the<br /> publisher only; he cannot go behind and inquire<br /> whether this order is put down in the publisher&#039;s<br /> accounts to the author. With this clause he<br /> could not print extra editions without breaking<br /> the law, and most publishers would not even be<br /> tempted to give extra orders; for many a man<br /> will sin if sure not to be found out, who will<br /> shrink before the remotest chance of detection or<br /> of appearing dishonest in the eyes of any one<br /> person beside himself.<br /> I must now humbly, and—I may add—despon-<br /> dently, confess a failure on this point. I was<br /> recently speaking to a junior member of a good<br /> firm. He was praising the absolute straightfor-<br /> wardness of his house, saying that he had been<br /> through the drudgery and routine, and knew all<br /> the wheels and cog-wheels of the huge machinery,<br /> concluding that with his own eyes he had seen<br /> the perfect honesty of the firm. 1 now asked how,<br /> theoretically speaking, his firm would consider<br /> the addition of this clause into their agreement.<br /> His answer was, I regret to say, that such a thing<br /> would be a &quot; slur,&quot; Ac.—in fact, the old story.<br /> However, either of these clauses would be suffi-<br /> cient to relieve the present unpleasant strain in<br /> the relations between author and publisher. The<br /> ideal would be a complete audit of printer&#039;s and<br /> publisher&#039;s accounts; if this be conceded, there is<br /> no reason for the partners in literary property<br /> ever to quarrel and tight. An author would feel<br /> in his publisher the same confidence as in his.<br /> banker.<br /> It is therefore seen that within my experience<br /> no publisher consents in his agreements to a legal<br /> examination of accounts—nay, more, to any check<br /> upou possible dishonesty.<br /> In this suspicion of possible dishonesty lies all<br /> the unpleasantness of the relations between<br /> author and publisher, and until it is removed,<br /> this unpleasantness expressed or understood will<br /> subsist. If you are honest, show it. An honest<br /> man is glad to do so; in fact, he is grateful that<br /> suspicion of his honesty be made impossible.<br /> Honesty never shuns the light. How do you<br /> expect to be trusted (as you should be) if you<br /> purposely and deliberately take the attitude best<br /> calculated to rouse suspicion?<br /> In these remarks I have only considered the<br /> royalty system, because it is undoubtedly the<br /> most important; for it is the fairest to both,<br /> parties. With a sum down either publisher or<br /> author (theoretically, at any rate) loses a legiti-<br /> mate part of his profits. In the royalty system<br /> the publisher qua capitalist reaps a high profit<br /> for his investment and &quot;risk.&quot; This is right;<br /> but this should be all, and no possible doubt<br /> should be left to lurk in the author&#039;s mind.<br /> Sooner or later, the system of honest royalty<br /> will prevail; if the large, old, and respected firms<br /> adhere to their high and mighty ways, they will<br /> be replaced by new firms whose dealings are<br /> above board, and therefore completely satisfactory<br /> to the author. But the sooner the older firms<br /> alter their ways the better, or they will only be<br /> supported by young and untried authors, and<br /> left by those who are sure of a certain amount of<br /> sale.<br /> I now come to the practical conclusion of my<br /> tdtonnements. Eighteen months ago I tried to*<br /> get a well-known firm to publish a book of mine<br /> &quot;on commission.&quot; I went; I offered to take<br /> all &quot;risks,&quot; and, whereas they give a 10 per cent,<br /> royalty, / offered them a 15 per cent. royalty on.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 105 (#117) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> the sales. This proved too much. &quot;What!&quot;<br /> exclaimed the head, &quot; / become author aud you<br /> publisher! No thank you!&quot; The cat was out of<br /> the bag: huge profits or no deal.<br /> At last, after much seeking, I heard of a large<br /> firm of &quot;distributors&quot; who also take up pub-<br /> lishing, and came to the most satisfactory arrange-<br /> ment, which, I see in The Author (August, p. 59,<br /> col. 2) has been also adopted by Miss Braddon.<br /> I send my MS. to the printer and the books to<br /> the agent who distributes them to the booksellers,<br /> and asks me for supplies. All is here above<br /> board; and hitherto I have had nothing but<br /> satisfaction.<br /> There are three points I would finally men-<br /> tion:<br /> 1. Choose your publisher or agent in or<br /> near Paternoster-row—it will avoid disappoint-<br /> ment. Booksellers send there every day, and<br /> their profits are so low that they can barely<br /> be expected to pay extra fares for their col-<br /> lectors to go further away, hence the excuses<br /> &quot;out of print&quot; or &quot;binding&quot; that are given to<br /> inquirers.<br /> 2. The two other points are Nos. 3 and 4 in the<br /> scheme agreed upon by the Booksellers&#039; Associa-<br /> tion and our Society and named in The Author<br /> (Aug. 1898, p. 63, coi. 1, fin.). &quot;Books are to be<br /> sent on sale or return.&quot; Undoubtedly the plan<br /> offers many advantages.<br /> Unfortunately, on the one hand, I am told by a<br /> large firm of publishers that, after very many<br /> years&#039; experience, they find that the system is not<br /> to be recommended; they say that many book-<br /> sellers strongly object to it, on the ground that<br /> books get mislaid in their stock and that they<br /> have to pay for goods they did not order and did<br /> not want; besides, that too many of the books<br /> are returned more or less damaged and require<br /> fresh binding.<br /> On the other hand, I must confess that book-<br /> sellers, for whom I feel the sincerest sympathy,<br /> are very remiss. A draper, a hair-dresser, or any<br /> other retail house will hardly allow you to leave<br /> the shop without making some purchase, however<br /> useless to yourself. On the contrary, I have<br /> hardly ever in England, save in Oxford, been<br /> shown a book that might be useful or agreeable, or<br /> urged to buy one;. and I suppose the experience<br /> of others coincides with mine. To this supine-<br /> ness might be attributed the regrettable depres-<br /> sion in the bookselling trade as well as to the<br /> cut-throat competition that booksellers have prac-<br /> tised against one another.<br /> If a member of the Society knew of an issue to<br /> this impasse I am sure he would be doing yeoman<br /> service to the Society by a communication.<br /> 3. My third remark refers to No. 4 of the<br /> scheme mentioned above: &quot;the odd copy is to be<br /> abolished.&quot; As the odd copy is generally given<br /> to the bookseller on a whole order, even if it<br /> consists of different books, and as the profits of<br /> the bookseller are generally so small, it seems<br /> that the odd copy is an advantage that should<br /> hardly be denied to him. It is an encouragement<br /> for him to buy and therefore to place books<br /> before the public.<br /> I cannot conclude without anticipating a<br /> certain amount of misrepresentation to which<br /> my condemnatory remarks against some pub-<br /> lishers might give rise.<br /> I am fully alive to the valuable help given to<br /> authors by good publishers, and gladly acknow-<br /> ledge the same with a personal feeling of<br /> gratitude. How many readers, schoolmasters,<br /> and others will take up a book merely because it<br /> bears the name of a good firm ?&quot; The book<br /> must be good since so-and-so publish it.&quot; That<br /> name is a sort of hall mark. Besides, a good<br /> publisher will give a young author a start which<br /> will be the initial point of a brilliant career.<br /> Finally, by friendly words of encouragement, pub-<br /> lishers often give fresh life and ardour to a<br /> despondent and nervous author. In a word, it<br /> would require but a very little concession on the<br /> part of the publishers to make their relation with<br /> authors perfectly pleasant and cordial, as they<br /> should be—as pleasant as those between an<br /> author and his banker.<br /> This long tale of experiences and these many<br /> remarks may be of use to other members. I trust<br /> they may. I offer them in that hope. At any<br /> rate, they will prove conclusively how useful The<br /> Author is, and what good work the Society does<br /> in a way that it probably never suspects. Many<br /> besides myself have doubtless imbibed and thought<br /> out the ideas and doctrines propounded in The<br /> Author, and have individually and obscurely<br /> approached the publishers in the same direction.<br /> If, however, there was a little more esprit de corps<br /> among authors, publishers would make at once con-<br /> cessions which they will have ultimately to make,<br /> and which seem to me to be merely a concession<br /> to the ordinary principles of honesty.<br /> Victor Spiers.<br /> II.—The Publishers&#039; Draft Agreements.<br /> 1.<br /> I would call attention to certain facts in the<br /> publishers&#039; draft agreements which deserve to be<br /> borne in mind very carefully.<br /> 1. There is not a word said as to any means of<br /> checking accounts or preventing dishonesty.<br /> Alone among all men in the world of any trade or<br /> calling whatever, the publisher regards himself<br /> as a person whose honour and honesty are<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 106 (#118) ############################################<br /> <br /> io6<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> absolutely beyond the reach of suspicion. He is<br /> like Caesar&#039;s wife: he is like the French army:<br /> he is unlike any other person or any other institu-<br /> tion, and this in the face of the scandals and<br /> exposures constantly made in these columns.<br /> 2. The right of taking—or purloining—as<br /> much of the profits as he pleases by advertising<br /> in his own organs or by exchanges is carefully<br /> reserved by preserving silence on the subject.<br /> 3. In second and following editions the cost of<br /> production is greatly—very greatly—reduced.<br /> There is no composition, no moulding or stereo-<br /> typing, no corrections, very little advertising.<br /> The cost of an ordinary six shilling book may be<br /> reduced to less than od., yet no change is made<br /> in the author&#039;s royalty and no better terms are<br /> offered to the bookseller.<br /> n.<br /> No criticisms in The Author on the methods<br /> of publishers have ever equalled in point and<br /> brutal frankness their own recent f ulmination.<br /> What do publishers take us for? Do they<br /> imagine that because we are authors we are<br /> entirely devoid of business capacity, and have<br /> returned to our first childhood? With them<br /> apparently might is right, and their publishers&#039;<br /> agreements are clearly constructed with a cordial<br /> recognition of this principle. The insult of the<br /> whole thing is, to my mind, the worst feature.<br /> Authors are not credited with common sense, to<br /> say nothing of ordinary acuteness. They are<br /> therefore to be treated with a high hand.<br /> I am convinced that publishers have dealt<br /> themselves a heavy, if not disastrous, blow. In<br /> their blind and reckless policy they would kill the<br /> goose that lays the golden egss; for it is quite<br /> certain their very existence depends on the<br /> author, while the converse is not by any means<br /> the case.<br /> Do they really think that anyone except the<br /> struggling amateur will submit work to them<br /> under these new conditions? If so, their credu-<br /> lity is on a par with their &quot; agreements.&quot;<br /> In these proposals publishers have found a<br /> short cut to the tether-end of the authors&#039;<br /> patience; and those whose work is marketable<br /> will, in many instances, rid themselves of this<br /> publishers&#039; incubus altogether and follow the<br /> excellent examples of Miss Braddon and others<br /> —examples which I, for one, will imitate at the<br /> earliest opportunity. Spero Melioka.<br /> m.<br /> Tour invitation in the September Author for<br /> an expression of opinion by all your readers<br /> on the subject of the publishers&#039; Draft Agree-<br /> ments is my excuse for the present communica-<br /> tion. I at once confess that in the past I have<br /> thought your painting of the picture of the<br /> publisher rather on the black side than otherwise.<br /> I was grievously mistaken. As you remark,<br /> your past statements have fallen far short of the<br /> truth. All authors are deeply indebted to the<br /> Society for its strenuous fight—in the face of<br /> direst ridicule—on behalf of the rights and just<br /> dues of literary property. There is but one<br /> remedy for the present state of affairs, and now<br /> that the matter is laid bare befoi.e all who care to<br /> read, it is devoutly to be hoped that that remedy<br /> will be applied. It is that the stronger writers<br /> make a firm stand for equitable agreements.<br /> Beginners—like myself—are as dust in the<br /> balance. We can do little. It is for the giants<br /> in the literary world to turn the scale. Many of<br /> the best known names in literature are on the list<br /> of the Authors&#039; Society. If they present their<br /> ultimatum much can be accomplished. It seems<br /> to me incredible that even the most inexperienced,<br /> most eager-to-get-into-print young author would<br /> sign the agreements put forth by the publishers;<br /> yet if this is not the case, why publish them at<br /> all? From a business point of view they are<br /> amazing—almost absurd. I have had many<br /> business agreements through my hands, but,<br /> so far as my experience goes, no business<br /> man who prides himself on any commercial<br /> acumen whatever, would so give himself away as to<br /> propound—even to his employee—such ridiculous<br /> conditions as those in question contain. I have<br /> always been led to believe that an agreement<br /> to be valid must set forth reasonable advantages<br /> accruing to both parties. In those under discus-<br /> sion where do the author&#039;s advantages appear?<br /> You ask for brevity; but before concluding may<br /> I state two suggestions which have occurred to<br /> me that may appeal to you as being worth dis-<br /> cussion:<br /> 1. Would it not now be advisable for the<br /> Society to frame a set of agreements which<br /> shall adequately protect the author as pro-<br /> ducer, whilst giving the publisher what is<br /> his due as distributor?<br /> 2. I believe that one or two well-known authors,<br /> to their own distinct advantage, have<br /> acted as their own distributors. On the<br /> same basis could not the Society establish a<br /> distributing department? This arrange-<br /> ment would, I think, serve a two-fold<br /> purpose. (1) To many members of the<br /> Society, whose names are a guarantee of<br /> good work, it would doubtless be a welcome<br /> innovation. (2) It would drive home the<br /> lesson the Society wishes to inculcate more<br /> forcibly than any other course. J. C. S.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 107 (#119) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE A UTHOR.<br /> III.—The Registration of Titles.<br /> There has been some discussion in the papers<br /> lately with regard to the question of titles in books<br /> and the registration of titles.<br /> As it appears from most of the correspondence<br /> that the writers are ignorant of the law that bears<br /> upon the question relating to the property in<br /> titles—as they speak of &quot;Copyright in Titles,&quot;<br /> whereas no such thing as copyright exists in<br /> titles—it may be as well to make a few remarks on<br /> the subject.<br /> The law referring to the right of property in a<br /> title is very clear. The interpretation of that law<br /> is exceedingly difficult and complicated. Each<br /> ease has to be decided by its own particular<br /> evidence. The law bearing on the right of pro-<br /> perty in titles comes under, and is in some ways<br /> analogous to, Trade Mark law, but titles cannot<br /> be registered like trade marks. The main ques-<br /> tion to be decided on each case, however, is<br /> whether a fraud has been committed on the<br /> public. To take an example: Suppose A. pub-<br /> lishes a book with a certain title, and the book<br /> has an established reputation and a continued<br /> and established sale, it would be impossible for<br /> B. to produce a book with a similar title, as<br /> people might obtain B.&#039;s book when desiring to<br /> obtain A.&#039;s, and thus would be defrauded by B.&#039;s<br /> conduct; but, to give A. a property, A.&#039;s book<br /> must have established itself on the market, and<br /> must be in continuous sale. The difficulty of the<br /> interpretation of the law is therefore evident, as it<br /> can only be decided on the facts of each particular<br /> case and by each individual judge as to what will<br /> constitute an established position of A.&#039;s book on<br /> the market.<br /> The most curious case on the subject was a<br /> case entitled Maxwell v. Hogg. Messrs. Hogg,<br /> in 1863, registered an intended new magazine to<br /> be called Belgravia. In 1866, such magazine not<br /> having appeared, Mr. Maxwell, in ignorance of<br /> what Messrs. Hogg had done, projected a maga-<br /> zine with the same name, and incurred con-<br /> siderable expense in preparing it, and exten-<br /> sively advertising it in August and Sep-<br /> tember, as about to appear in October. Messrs.<br /> Hogg, knowing of this, made hasty preparations<br /> for bringing out their own magazine before that<br /> of Mr. Maxwell could appear, and in the mean-<br /> time accepted an order from Mr. Maxwell for<br /> advertising his (Mr. Maxwell&#039;s) magazine on the<br /> covers of their own publications, and the first<br /> day on which they informed Mr. Maxwell that<br /> they objected to his publishing a magazine under<br /> that name was Sept. 25, on which day the first<br /> number of Messrs. Hogg&#039;s magazine appeared.<br /> Mr. Maxwell&#039;s magazine appeared in October.<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> Under these circumstances, on a bill filed by Mr.<br /> Maxwell, it was held, that Mr. Maxwell&#039;s adver-<br /> tisements and expenditure &quot;did not give Mm any<br /> exclusive right to the use of the name &#039;• Bel-<br /> gravia,&quot; and that he could not restrain Messrs.<br /> Hogg from publishing a magazine under the<br /> same name, the first number of which appeared<br /> before Mr. Maxwell had published his; and on a<br /> bill filed by Messrs. Hogg, that the registration<br /> by them of the title of an intended publication<br /> could not confer upon them a copyright in that<br /> name, and that, in the circumstances of the case,<br /> they had not acquired any right to restrain Mr.<br /> Maxwell from using the name as being Messrs.<br /> Hogg&#039;s trade mark.<br /> It would appear also that if one person pub-<br /> lished a scientific book with the same title as a<br /> book of poems by another person, no action<br /> would lie, as there would be no fraud on the<br /> public, it being impossible that any person in-<br /> tending to buy the scientific book would be<br /> deceived into buying a book of poems, or the<br /> reverse.<br /> The clear facts to be remembered with regard<br /> to title, then, may be considered as follows:<br /> 1. There is no copyright in a title.<br /> 2. An author has only property in a title when<br /> his book has a reputation on the market, is<br /> selling, and when such reputation and sale are<br /> prejudiced by the production of any book with<br /> the same or similar title.<br /> 3. The Courts must be the final arbiters on the<br /> facts of each particular case.<br /> 4. Though the law is clear, the interpretation<br /> of that law is exceedingly difficult.<br /> 5. Registration of a title merely gives no pro-<br /> perty in that title.<br /> 6. From a practical point of view, therefore, it<br /> is better for an author as a rule to settle a point<br /> on reasonable terms than to go to law.<br /> 7. It is better still for an author not to<br /> mention his title to anyone until his book is<br /> produced.<br /> Those who through personal experience have<br /> come across the question for the first time con-<br /> sider the matter as a difficulty but recently<br /> discovered, which needs immediate amendment;<br /> they may, however, rest assured that the question<br /> of legislating more fully on the point has been<br /> deeply and thoroughly discussed and considered<br /> by all those who have attempted to legislate on<br /> copyright or who are interested in the affairs of<br /> authorship. It is not a simple or one-sided<br /> question. It is exceedingly complicated, and has<br /> many sides.<br /> At present no remedy has been devised suffi-<br /> ciently satisfactory to embody in any of the draft<br /> Copyright Bills. &quot;G. H. Thring.<br /> M<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 108 (#120) ############################################<br /> <br /> io8 THE AUTHOR.<br /> IV.—Two Curious Cases,<br /> i. Refusing to Reprint a Book.<br /> Some years ago one of the largest publishing<br /> firms in England entered into a contract with a<br /> young author for the publication of a technical<br /> book. The terms of the agreement were roughly<br /> as follows: That the publisher should stand all<br /> risk of the cost of production, and should pay the<br /> author 10 per cent. after the sale of the first<br /> 2000 copies: That the copyright should belong<br /> to the publisher.<br /> The further details of the contract it is un-<br /> necessary to enter into, except to state that the<br /> publisher had practical control of the book over<br /> all the world.<br /> The book did not have a rapid sale, but, owing<br /> to its rather unique qualities, had a steady and<br /> continued one. Eight years after its first publi-<br /> cation the 2000 copies were sold out. On the<br /> author writing to the publisher and requesting<br /> that the book should be reprinted, he received a<br /> letter stating that, as there was not sufficient demand<br /> for the book amongst their customers, they would<br /> not reprint it, but they offered to sell the plates<br /> and their rights under the agreement to the<br /> author for £6, ending their letter with the fol-<br /> lowing statement: &quot;Which is half of our loss to<br /> this date on the book.&quot;<br /> The following particulars may tend to explain<br /> the position of the author and publisher:<br /> First. The cost of production of 2000 copies<br /> of a book of the size and price referred to should<br /> be easily covered by the sale of 2000 copies.<br /> Secondly. The author should never have sold<br /> his copyright.<br /> Thirdly. Ten per cent. would have been a small<br /> royalty if offered to the author from the<br /> beginning.<br /> Lastly. After the publishers have reaped all<br /> the benefits they possibly can from the sale of the<br /> book they refuse to reprint. What their reason<br /> may be for this refusal of course it is impossible to<br /> know. They had the plates. There would there-<br /> fore only be the cost of print and paper. It<br /> could not possibly have been the very small re-<br /> muneration due to the author. The question,<br /> then, must be left an open one, but from the<br /> author&#039;s point of view the treatment was distinctly<br /> bad, and this treatment was from one of the<br /> largest firms of publishers in England.<br /> As the copyright belongs to the publishers the<br /> unfortunate author is practically at their mercy.<br /> 2. A Series of Mistakes.<br /> 1. The authors undertook to pay for the print-<br /> ing, binding—in a word, the manufacture.<br /> 2. Accounts were to be made half yearly, pay-<br /> ment six months later; so that the publishers<br /> gained, and the author lost, the interest on their<br /> property for an average of nine months.<br /> 3. The author retained the right of sale in<br /> Ireland.<br /> 4. Published price, 3s. Sales to be accounted<br /> for at id. over two-thirds, i.e., at 2s. id.; but 13<br /> as 12, making the return of each book is. 1 i_fed.<br /> 5. For printing, binding, and stereotyping the<br /> author was to pay is. 1 \d. each for the first 2000,<br /> after that j\d. for following orders of 2000 each.<br /> That is to say, the book was alleged to cost<br /> £.112 10s. for the first edition of 2000, and<br /> .£64 iis. Sd. for all subsequent editions of 2000.<br /> The publishers were to receive 20 per cent. on<br /> all sales in England, and 10 per cent on all sales<br /> in Ireland, where the price was to be 2.1. net. The<br /> book sold largelv in Ireland.<br /> The author does not seem to have questioned<br /> the charge for printing, which may therefore be<br /> left.<br /> 6. When the first account came in a sum of .£5<br /> was charged for moulding, which was actually<br /> included in the estimate, being a part of the<br /> process of stereotyping. The general charge for<br /> moulding is 5*. or 6*. a sheet, so that if the charge<br /> for moulding is correct, the book should contain<br /> i6| sheets, or 264 pages.<br /> 7. A second item in the account showed that<br /> the first 3000 copies had been charged at the same<br /> rate as that agreed upon for the first 2000.<br /> 8. A third item showed that a few pages over<br /> and above those of the original estimate had been<br /> charged for as printing aDd binding (!) Now,<br /> they would certainly make a difference in the<br /> printing, but could they make a difference in the<br /> binding?<br /> 9. On the author representing that the original<br /> estimate included stereotyping, the charge for<br /> £5 was withdrawn.<br /> 10. As to the second mistake, that, too, was<br /> withdrawn.<br /> 11. Then the publisher began to make delays<br /> and to send up accounts complicated and in-<br /> volved. Finally, the author placed them in the<br /> hands of an actuary, who found out that the<br /> publisher owed the author the sum of .£150 (less<br /> a small payment made on account), and the author<br /> compelled him to pay it.<br /> ANOTHER WORD ON ROYALTIES-<br /> fl^HKEE months ago we gave in The Author<br /> I certain figures which were actual estimates<br /> tendered by printers. The example is, as<br /> usual, the 6*. book, not necessarily a novel.<br /> From these figures the following may be made out.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 109 (#121) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> A book of 20 sheets of 16 pages to a sheet: or<br /> of 10 sheets of 32 pages to a sheet: in small pica<br /> type: with 29 lines and about 300 words to a<br /> page, costs to produce, on estimates like all those<br /> given in these columns, real and not invented:<br /> An edition of 1000 copies will cost about Is. 6d.<br /> or is. yd. to produce. This is the kind of book<br /> which has a limited sale and will not go into a<br /> second edition.<br /> An edition of 2000 copies, including moulding<br /> for a second edition and a moderate amount of<br /> advertising, can be produced for thirteen or<br /> fourteen pence.<br /> An edition of 3000 copies can be produced for<br /> a shilling a copy, including moulding, but not<br /> stereotyping.<br /> But a second edition of 3000 copies, with<br /> stereotyping, can be produced for eightpence.<br /> In the second edition there is neither composi-<br /> tion, nor corrections, nor moulding, and very<br /> little advertising.<br /> It is quite possible to reduce these figures<br /> still lower. Paper was never so cheap, and<br /> becomes cheaper.<br /> Now any royalty that may be offered must be<br /> based upon these figures, or something like them.<br /> On the first, or only, edition of 1000 copies the<br /> publisher and author begin to divide after 520<br /> copies are sold; they may make more, however,<br /> than is apparent, because they need not &quot; mould&quot;<br /> a book which is not going into a new edition:<br /> they do not bind more than they want: and they<br /> do not advertise so much as is set down.<br /> On the second supposition if all the copies are<br /> sold, a profit is made of about .£230.<br /> On the third, of about .£380.<br /> On the last, however, and on all following<br /> editions, there is a great change.<br /> The profit on every copy, if all are sold, may ,<br /> now actually reach the sum of 2s. l0d.<br /> Observe carefully that no further concession is<br /> ever made to the bookseller when this improve-<br /> ment sets in.<br /> It is therefore quite clear that he has been, and<br /> is, treated with great injustice.<br /> What change is made in the position of the<br /> author? As a rule, none. The publisher sweeps<br /> all into his own pocket.<br /> It is therefore necessary that the whole system<br /> of royalties should be altered, and to this point we<br /> shall next proceed. Meantime we remark that the<br /> huge saving on the cost of production in the second<br /> and subsequent editions is not so much as alluded<br /> to in the publishers&#039; Draft Agreements. We must<br /> imagine the committee agreeing together at their<br /> sittings, because they could not possibly ignore<br /> the point, in a solemn and heartfelt prayer that<br /> authors would never find it out.<br /> A bookseller, quoted on another page, writes:<br /> &quot;The odd copy is a curse to us. I can get a 6*.<br /> book for 3*. gd. by taking seven. But I must sell<br /> them all or I lose. For an odd copy I must pay<br /> 4*. 2d.&quot; He sells it at 4*. 6d. In the latter case,<br /> he gets 4rf. profit, in the former gd., out of which<br /> he has to pay carriage and his office expenses.<br /> The publisher for the same volume—in the<br /> second edition which, by our figures, costs Sd. a<br /> copy—pockets 2*. l0d. less the sum he gives the<br /> author—rarely, until lately, more than 1 s. So we<br /> have the scale of profits :—<br /> Author, who contributes all the work, is.<br /> Bookseller, who takes most of the risk, 4d., or<br /> at best gd.<br /> Publisher, who takes the rest of the risk, if<br /> there is any, has I*, l0d.<br /> It hardly seems quite equitable, does it?<br /> Let us draw up another table showing what<br /> various royalties mean for the second and follow-<br /> ing agreements. We must, however, point out<br /> that these figures are not final. Every step which<br /> we take forward brings us to a clearer under-<br /> standing of the facts, i.e., of the enormous profits<br /> hitherto made by publishers. That they think<br /> themselves absolutely entitled by right to<br /> enormous profits, and that they believe book<br /> sellers and authors entitled to no profit at all, is<br /> clearly shown by their Draft Agreements.<br /> Here, however, are the figures for the second<br /> edition:—<br /> On a 6s. volume gives the<br /> A percentage of<br /> Publisher<br /> Author<br /> s. d.<br /> ,. d.<br /> 5<br /> 2 6f<br /> ° 3i<br /> 10<br /> 2 2|<br /> 0 7i<br /> 15<br /> &#039;&quot;*<br /> 0 IOj<br /> 20<br /> 1 7i<br /> I 2f<br /> 25<br /> 1 4<br /> i 6<br /> 3°<br /> • of<br /> &#039;9s<br /> 35<br /> 0 8}<br /> 40<br /> 0 5*<br /> 2 4.i<br /> 45<br /> 0 if<br /> 2 8f<br /> But, says the publisher, &quot;There are my office<br /> expenses.&quot; Quite so. Every business has its<br /> office expenses. There are also the author&#039;s office<br /> expenses, and there are the bookseller&#039;s expenses.<br /> Another way to approach the subject, and<br /> perhaps a better way, because all the copies will<br /> not perhaps be sold, is to let the royalty begin<br /> when the cost of producing the edition is defrayed.<br /> This method, however, can only be allowed where<br /> the publisher gives proofs of honesty. Thus, if<br /> the second edition of 3000 copies costs .£95,<br /> the expense is defrayed by the sale of 544 copies.<br /> If it costs a little more or less, because this<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 110 (#122) ############################################<br /> <br /> tio THE AUTHOR.<br /> estimate is only for a book of a definite size and<br /> price, this number can be changed. Since the rest<br /> of the edition is pure profit, all that has to be<br /> done is to arrange the proporlion. I would<br /> suggest:<br /> (i.) For the bookseller, better terms in second<br /> and following editions: he should claim<br /> the right to share in the increased profit;<br /> (2.) For the publisher, one-third of what is<br /> left when the cost is paid.<br /> (3.) For the author, two-thirds.<br /> THE CASE OF THE BOOKSELLER,<br /> IEARNESTLY invite booksellers to a con-<br /> sideration of the figures given in these<br /> columns. The question of terms and shares<br /> and charges most closely concerns the author,<br /> which is my excuse for speaking on the subject.<br /> In reference to the figures, my own scheme is<br /> something as follows:<br /> 1. The present system, by which the bookseller<br /> has to take all the risk, should be replaced by a<br /> system of sale or return; that is to say, that the<br /> bookseller should be free to order, as at present,<br /> as many books as he pleases, but that, in order<br /> for other books to get a chance of exhibition or<br /> sale, the publisher should send him copies on sale<br /> or return. The bookseller, however, must be free<br /> to refuse or to take these books. It is objected<br /> that they sometimes get lost or soiled. Well, if<br /> they cannot be sold on the bookseller&#039;s shelves,<br /> they will certainly not be sold on the publisher&#039;s<br /> or the bookbinder&#039;s shelves. There is, therefore,<br /> no real loss.<br /> 2. In the choice of books on order, the book-<br /> seller is at present guided by the name of the<br /> author, his own judgment of a book, and the<br /> demand for a book. He wants them to unite<br /> advice and information. For this purpose he<br /> wants a small and private paper devoted entirely<br /> to his own interests. In this paper he should<br /> receive every month a brief account of such books<br /> as are likely to be popular. He might thus be<br /> saved from heavy loss. The cost of this little<br /> paper, with the editor or reader, would be covered<br /> by a guinea subscription from every member of<br /> the Association. Publishers would, of course,<br /> have to send copies of books to the office of the<br /> paper.<br /> This paper need not concern itself with any<br /> other ii&#039;.atter than (1) the figures which have<br /> proved so useful to ourselves: those, namely,<br /> which show the cost of production, the position<br /> of the authors, and that of the booksellers; and<br /> (2) the advice as to the new books offered.<br /> It would be most necessary to find readers<br /> of the utmost integrity, who could be relied<br /> upon not to take bribes or to recommend<br /> friends. With this object it would be desirable<br /> to find a person wholly unconnected with London<br /> coteries.<br /> 3. Armed with a knowledge of these figures, it<br /> would be easy for the Booksellers&#039; Association to<br /> demand equitable terms. It is ominous that<br /> many publishers, when the royalties of authors<br /> began to be raised, declared that they would have<br /> to raise their terms to the booksellers.<br /> 4. I have long thought that the Association<br /> might provide itself with editions of non-copy-<br /> right works. Such editions would cost them<br /> nothing—literally nothing. Consider,&quot; The Vicar<br /> of Wakefield&quot; is a book that is certain always<br /> to sell. If a cheap shilling edition of that work<br /> were issued by the Booksellers&#039; Association for<br /> themselves, and, if every bookseller took no more<br /> than three copies, the whole expense would be<br /> defrayed, while, if 10,000 copies were sold, there<br /> would be a considerable profit. This is a certain<br /> source of income: there would be no loss: the<br /> Authors&#039; Society would perhaps advise in the<br /> choice of the series. The trade price of the Asso-<br /> ciation&#039;s own series, instead of being 8|rf. would<br /> be 6rf. and still leave a margin.<br /> A country bookseller sends a publisher&#039;s list of<br /> prices. It is as follows. They are nearly all<br /> cheap books:<br /> Published<br /> Price.<br /> d.<br /> 6<br /> 0<br /> o<br /> 6<br /> 6<br /> o<br /> 6<br /> o<br /> 6<br /> Trade Price.<br /> 8. d.<br /> 5 4<br /> 2<br /> 1<br /> 6<br /> 9<br /> 5<br /> 1<br /> 41<br /> If seven Copies<br /> of each are<br /> Ordered.<br /> s. d.<br /> U Twelve &quot;As-<br /> sorted,&quot; then<br /> as Thirteen.<br /> d.<br /> o<br /> o<br /> 4<br /> 3i<br /> 7<br /> Ti<br /> o<br /> 7S<br /> 4<br /> If, be points out, he takes an &quot;assorted&quot; lot—<br /> four at is.: three at 2*. 6rf.: three at 3*. 6d. -. one<br /> at 5*.: one at 6*.: one at 7s. 6d.: and receives<br /> in addition to the above allowances a discount<br /> of 5 per cent. for payment to time; &quot;and if I<br /> sell the whole lot I make a handsome profit of<br /> 3s. 5&lt;Z., out of which must be deducted the<br /> carriage, which amounts to is. or is. 3rf.&quot;<br /> In a word, out of a margin of 2s. 3c/*.,<br /> outlay of £1 7*. 3rf., the bookseller takes<br /> sale, and has to pay rent, rates and taxes,<br /> ants and other expenses.<br /> &quot;It is only,&quot; he writes, &quot;a question of time for<br /> the country bookseller to be driven out of exist-<br /> on an<br /> risk of<br /> assist-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 111 (#123) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> ence, unless the present arrangements are speedily<br /> altered.&quot; And so, indeed, it seems to me.<br /> How does the publisher stand, therefore, as<br /> regards author and bookseller? The following<br /> figures show the necessity of understanding the<br /> whole case, including the production, the book-<br /> seller and the author. We take the &quot;assorted&quot;<br /> price and 13 as 12. The cost of production is set<br /> do .vn on an average book:<br /> &lt; ublished<br /> Price.<br /> Trade Prloe<br /> less 5 per<br /> Cost of<br /> Production.<br /> Author&#039;s<br /> Rojaltv<br /> 10 per ct-nt.<br /> Author&#039;s<br /> Royalty<br /> 20 per cent.<br /> cent.<br /> *. d.<br /> *. d<br /> f. d.<br /> d.<br /> ». d.<br /> 7 6<br /> 4 9<br /> ■ 3<br /> 9<br /> 1 6<br /> 6 0<br /> 3 9i<br /> I 0<br /> r.<br /> 1 1&#039;i<br /> 5 0<br /> 3 2<br /> 0 10<br /> 6<br /> I 0<br /> 3 6<br /> 2 i\<br /> 0 8<br /> 4s,<br /> 0 8|<br /> 2 6<br /> 1 6<br /> 0 7<br /> 3<br /> 0 6<br /> Now consider the respective winnings of each<br /> of the three in this delightful game:<br /> (1.) Author&#039;s royalty at 10 per cent.:<br /> Price of book.<br /> Author at 10<br /> per &lt;*r•nt.<br /> d.<br /> 9<br /> 71<br /> 6<br /> 41<br /> 1<br /> Publisher.<br /> «. d.<br /> 2 9<br /> 2 If<br /> 1 10<br /> o 8<br /> Bookseller.<br /> d.<br /> o ioj<br /> o 8.1<br /> o 7<br /> ° 5i<br /> o 34<br /> (2.) If the author has 20 per cent. we have the<br /> fol.owing figures, cost of production and trade<br /> price as before:<br /> Price of book.<br /> Author at 20 per<br /> &lt;,mt.<br /> Publisher.<br /> Bookseller.<br /> ,. d.<br /> S. d.<br /> s. d.<br /> 7 6<br /> 1 6<br /> 2 0<br /> 0 ioi<br /> 6 0<br /> I 2*<br /> ■ 5!<br /> 0 8^<br /> 5 0<br /> I O<br /> 1 4<br /> 0 7<br /> 3 6<br /> O 83<br /> 0 7hl<br /> 0 si<br /> 2 6<br /> 0 6<br /> 0 5<br /> 0 31<br /> These figures are recommended for careful<br /> consideration.<br /> The cost of production is only approximate, but<br /> it is just above the average. For instance, I<br /> have before me an estimate for producing a book<br /> which may be priced at js. 6d., 6s., or 58.,<br /> according to the fancy of the publisher. The<br /> price for an edition of 3000 copies, composing,<br /> printing and paper, is 6d. a copy, and it is<br /> every day done more cheaply. The binding will<br /> be under 4d.<br /> These figures show the position of the book-<br /> seller, author, and publisher, on those books only<br /> which the bookseller buys of the publisher. But<br /> a j;reat part of the business is carried on by<br /> m ans of the distributing agents, who get better<br /> VOL. IX<br /> ti-nns. Therefore we have arrived at 3*. 6d.<br /> as the average sum received by the publisher for<br /> a 6*. book. As regard the cost, however, it must<br /> be remembered that the second and following<br /> editions cost a great deal less than the first.<br /> W. B.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> IN another column I submit certain figures to<br /> the consideration of booksellers. I have<br /> long felt that their case demands the atten-<br /> tion of all persons interested in literature from<br /> the literary as well as the commercial point of<br /> view. In getting some relief for them we<br /> should be advancing our own interests from both<br /> points of view. If literature is to reach the<br /> people it must l.e exhibited and offered for sale.<br /> If the bookseller cannot do this, who can? I<br /> invite readers of The Author to consider this<br /> point, and if they have any advice to tender I<br /> shall be glad to receive it.<br /> Also in that other column will be found a note<br /> from a country bookseller about publishers&#039; terms.<br /> It shows that if he takes an &quot;assorted&quot; lot,<br /> that is, thirteen, from a list, he gets them as<br /> twelve. It also shows that if he sells them at the<br /> discount price of 25 per cent. off, he makes the<br /> handsome profit of 2*-. 3rf. from the whole. It he<br /> does not succeed in selling the whole he loses<br /> that profit. Do these figures bring home to us<br /> the present position of the bookseller? What<br /> do the publishers want to do? They would raise<br /> the price of books to the public: they would<br /> make the bookseller still go on taking most of the<br /> risk: they would bind him in chains so that he<br /> should not be allowed to do what what he pleased<br /> with his own. What do they propose to do with<br /> the author: They claim the right to charge<br /> what they please in addition to every item of cost:<br /> to charge what they p/ease for office expenses. I<br /> have shown that they may, if they please, take<br /> what share of the profits they please, and call it<br /> humorously half profits.<br /> I do not think that one point in the recent pro-<br /> posal to enslave the bookseller has received quite<br /> the attention which it deserves. A 6*. book was<br /> to be &quot;reduced&quot; to 5*. That meant increased<br /> from 4.V. 6d. to 5s. The booksellers who now pay<br /> various sums from 3*. ~\d. to 4*. 2d., but averag-<br /> ing 3s. 8rf., were to pay 3s. l0d. The publishers<br /> therefore proposed an extra 2d. a volume for<br /> themselves under this arrangement. This they<br /> called a disinterested Btep in the interests of the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 112 (#124) ############################################<br /> <br /> I I 2<br /> THE A UTHOR.<br /> bookseller. At their meeting one gentleman was so<br /> ill-advised as to ask what the author would gain<br /> —or lose—by the change. Nothing was said. It<br /> is easy to understand, however, what would<br /> happen to the unfortunate third partner. All his<br /> royalties now are calculated on the price being 6s.<br /> His friends the publishers would, perhaps, say,<br /> &quot;My dear fellow, we sell the book more cheaply,<br /> but you shall not lose. You had the magnificent<br /> royalty of 10 per cent. before—you shall hare it<br /> still.&#039; There! And now go and write to the<br /> papers, and say that even a publisher, despite the<br /> Society of Authors, can be nobly just!&quot; .And I<br /> wonder how many of our members there are who<br /> see through the simple trick. Why, it is exactly<br /> like that really very pretty trick in which the<br /> author is made to agree to &quot; half the royalty&quot; if<br /> the publisher sells the book at &quot; half the price.&quot;<br /> One practitioner, a deeply honourable man—<br /> religious, too—played this game, as has already<br /> been exposed, with a two volume novel. The<br /> &quot;face &quot; price was a guinea: the library price was<br /> generally something under half-a-guinea: all the<br /> copies, therefore, were sold under half price. And<br /> I wonder how many have fallen victims to a trick<br /> that is so barefaced and so simple. It would have<br /> been just the same with the royalties under the pro-<br /> pose&#039;I change, and, as in the famous &quot;half price<br /> half royalty &quot; trick, no one would have been more<br /> surprised than the publisher himself when the<br /> truth was communicated to him.<br /> Here are some figures showing the &quot; half price,<br /> half royalty&quot; trick. The trade price of a 6s.<br /> book is, say, 3s. Sd. The author has a 20 per<br /> cent. royalty upon it, i.e., is. 2\d. The cost of<br /> production is is. The publisher gets is. 5frf.<br /> He sells the book at 3*., which is what lie calls<br /> &quot;half price.&quot; The author has to take a half<br /> royalty, j\d. The publisher now gets is. 4-J-tf., so<br /> that if he were to reduce the price of his book<br /> he onlv gets *d. less, while the author is reduced<br /> b7 7\d.<br /> In the other case of a net book reduced to 5s.,<br /> but the trade priee increased to 3s. i0d., the<br /> 10 per cent. royalty would be 6d.: the 20 per cent.<br /> royalty is., and soon, compared with 7|rf., i*. 2}d.,<br /> and so on. _____<br /> It is announced as a &quot;new departure &quot; that a<br /> firm of publishers — Messrs. Macmillan — are<br /> going to produce a book &quot;on the instalment<br /> system.&quot; Is that new? Why, travellers have<br /> been going up and down the country getting<br /> subscribe s to pay by instalments for many<br /> years. The book tout is an old and well-established<br /> nuisance. The work is to be sold by the book-<br /> sellers, and the paragraph before m*» says, &#039;• Book-<br /> sellers will now have an opportunity of showing<br /> to what extent they are able and willing to benefit<br /> by a departure which is clearly in their interest.&quot;<br /> How it is more in their interest to sell in this<br /> way than in any other is not explained. Clearly<br /> it is for the interest of the publishers that the<br /> booksellers should sell their wares for them.<br /> But, unless better terms than usual are offered<br /> the unhappy booksellers, of which the world<br /> knows nothing, it is difficult to understand the<br /> special interest to the booksellers in &quot;the new<br /> departure.&quot; Now, when the slavery scheme<br /> was to the front the bookseller was admonished<br /> that the new departure was to &quot; his intere-t,&quot; but<br /> nothing was said then, or now, as to the interest<br /> of the publishers.<br /> From time to time there appears in the papers<br /> a correspondence about a title the use of which<br /> has been challenged by some publisher or author<br /> who had previously used it. The case affords an<br /> opportunity for a good deal of loose talk on the<br /> difficulty of finding titles which have not been<br /> used. Everybody has adventures of his own to<br /> relate, and certainly some cases are very hard.<br /> A title which seems exactly to suit the book has<br /> to be abandoned in a hurry and a new one<br /> chosen. Yet the first struck a note: it seemed<br /> to prepare the reader for what followed. A few<br /> weeks ago I received and was asked to publish<br /> a correspondence on the subject. It seemed to<br /> me that more would be gained by getting a state-<br /> ment of the law upon the subject. Hence the<br /> paper by Mr. Thring, in which the reader is<br /> instructed as to the kind of protection which the<br /> law grants to owners of literary property in this<br /> respect. Tbe whole point seems to be this:<br /> There is no copyright in a title, but if A. B.<br /> brings out a book bearing the same title as one<br /> already before the public, and if it can be proved<br /> that the sale of the second book is injuring, or<br /> likely to injure, that of the first, a court of law<br /> would probably restrain A. B. from continuing<br /> the sale of his book under that title.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> THE NAME OF THE PUBLISHER.<br /> 1.<br /> IHAVE made inquiries in various directions<br /> as to my opinion that the public do not care<br /> about the name of the publisher. The reply<br /> from the general reader has been mostly to the<br /> effect that he cares no more about the name of the<br /> publisher than the name of the printer. Two or<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 113 (#125) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> three reply that they know Dent&#039;s books to be<br /> wonderfully got up, and that they like John Lane&#039;s<br /> books for the same reason. Otherwise they do<br /> not mind. I subjoin two or three opinions. I<br /> am glad to publish the opinion of Mr. Alfred<br /> Wilson, though he does not agree with me, because<br /> his illustration of the importance to an author of<br /> getting his books all together shows that in such<br /> a case the name of the publisher is a considera-<br /> tion. W. B.<br /> II.<br /> I notice that in your August number the Editor<br /> says that &quot;the public care nothing . . . who<br /> is the publisher of a book,&quot; and that ihey are<br /> absolutely indifferent to this.<br /> Any bookseller will know, as I do, that the<br /> public looks at a new book of travel, if published<br /> by Murray, or a new book of belles lettres pub-<br /> lished by Macmillan, with a prepossession in its<br /> favour. The remark is often made to me, &quot; I don&#039;t<br /> know the author, but the book is published by , it is likely to be good.&quot;<br /> A cheap his orical resume has the chances much<br /> against it, prima facie, but let it be issued at<br /> 5*. in the Story of the Nations series, and it is<br /> (•ure of a certain amount of success at least.<br /> It is well known to all booksellers that if an<br /> author has an odd book or two by a publisher<br /> other than his regular one, however well it may<br /> sell at the time, it is soon forgotten, and has a<br /> comp iratively small sale.<br /> When &quot;Romola&quot; could not be had uniform<br /> with George Eliot&#039;s other works it had a much<br /> smaller sale than the others, now it sells quite as<br /> well. Certainly a new book by the writer of the<br /> moment will sell equally well at first, whoever<br /> publishes it, but the after sale will with equal<br /> cei tainty be much affected by its omission from<br /> the list of the author&#039;s other books.<br /> In short, I believe it to be to an author&#039;s<br /> interest to go to a good publisher, and to keep to<br /> himself if possible; and if his terms are some-<br /> what higher than those of a seconil-rate firm, it<br /> will yet be often worth while to accede to them.<br /> Perhaps I may claim that my opinions on the<br /> subject, whether right or wrong, are at least<br /> impartial, as I have not the least pecuniary<br /> interest in the matter, one way or another.<br /> Alfred Wilson (Bookseller).<br /> 18. Grracechurch-street, E.C.<br /> in.<br /> I am a reader of books, not a writer. I suppose<br /> I am one of the public. In answer to your<br /> question, I confess that I have never troubled<br /> myself with the name of the publisher. I know<br /> the names of Longman and Murray, and one or<br /> two more, I suppose, but I do not think they<br /> have any more to do with the contents of the<br /> book than the paper-maker. I suppose there is a<br /> paper-maker somewhere, but I am not concerned<br /> to know his name. One of the Public.<br /> IV.<br /> The question is a very simple one, and easily<br /> answered.<br /> I don&#039;t believe one ordinary reader in twenty<br /> ever troubles about the name of the publisher;<br /> but is not this on account of his modesty? Run<br /> your eye along any of your shelves. What strikes<br /> you is the title of the book and its author&#039;s name.<br /> In many cases the publisher&#039;s name is not<br /> apparent at all:—<br /> 4<br /> Tennyson&#039;s Works<br /> id Sonnete<br /> Si<br /> i&#039;s Garden<br /> a<br /> tat<br /> W<br /> .*»<br /> Barrie.<br /> rCraftsma<br /> Q<br /> ..0<br /> m<br /> a<br /> &quot;3<br /> W. Besant.<br /> &#039;5<br /> P<br /> £<br /> i<br /> o<br /> &lt;<br /> o<br /> Poems ai<br /> &amp;<br /> M<br /> Veroniof<br /> Alfred<br /> Barraok R<br /> §<br /> &amp;<br /> The Littl<br /> s<br /> TheMaste<br /> Still, the publisher has an important function<br /> to perform. We cannot certainly have a coat<br /> without the weaver of the cloth (author), but we<br /> should do very badly without the tailor (pub-<br /> lisher). Joseph Parkek.<br /> 39, Drvden-streot, Nottingham.<br /> Sept. i, 1898.<br /> V.<br /> Mr. Henry Glaisher, on being asked if the<br /> public inquire or care about the publisher of a<br /> book, says :—&quot; If a buyer has come for a special<br /> book which he desires to possess, he cares nothing<br /> about the name of the publisher: it makes no<br /> difference to him. If, however, he is looking<br /> over the shelves, intending to buy a book and<br /> uncertain whether to do so or not, his decision<br /> will often be made with reference to the publisher.<br /> If he sees a name which he has not learned to<br /> associate with rubbish, but the reverse, he will<br /> take that book in preference to one issued by a<br /> publisher whom he does not know, or whom he<br /> knows unfavourably. For this reason it is a<br /> decided advantage to have the name of a pub-<br /> lisher of repute on the title page. That is to say,<br /> one of twenty houses, and it matters little which.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 114 (#126) ############################################<br /> <br /> ii4 THE AUTHOR.<br /> THE DRAMATISATION OF NOVELS.<br /> [From the Grwloi*.]<br /> NOUS recevons de notre correspondant de<br /> Londres l&#039;intéressante lettre suivante:<br /> Londres, 25 août.<br /> L&#039;éloquente et énergique protestation de M.<br /> Emile Bergerat, reproduite par le Gaulois dans<br /> le courant de ce mois, contre l&#039;usage de drama-<br /> tiser les romans français en Angleterre sans<br /> l&#039;autorisation des auteurs, et le caractéristique<br /> incident survenu ces jours derniers entre MM.<br /> Victorien Sardou et Oscar Méténier d&#039;une part,<br /> et M. Paul Potter de l&#039;autre, au sujet de la<br /> pièce dramatique lirée ou adaptée de la Haine<br /> et de Mlle. Fi/r par l&#039;auteur américain, ont<br /> attiré à nouveau l&#039;attention du public anglais sur<br /> quelques points particulièrement défectueux de<br /> la législation actuelle concernant la propriété<br /> littéraire.<br /> Une de ces imperfections, des plus graves, est<br /> sans contredit le droit légal, octroyé parle dixième<br /> article de la Convention de Berne, de faire repré-<br /> senter sur la scène un roman dramatisé sans le<br /> consentement de l&#039;auteur. Cet article inique, M.<br /> Emile Bergerat nous l&#039;a fait observer, n&#039;a jamais<br /> pu être abrogé malgré les incessants efforts des<br /> délégués français aux congres internationaux<br /> réunis pour décider des droits artistiques et<br /> littéraires. La délégation britannique, seule<br /> entre toutes, s&#039;y opposa systématiquement et de<br /> toutes ses forces, non sans reconnaître, par<br /> manière d&#039;amende honorable, que &quot; c&#039;était là une<br /> chose fâcheuse.&quot; On ne saurait mieux s&#039;accuser,<br /> et à la vérité ce serait se méprendre que<br /> de ne pas croire que tel est le sentiment<br /> unanime du monde des lettres en Angleterre. Et<br /> pour preuves voici deux lettres, que M. Henry<br /> Arthur Jones, un des auteurs dramatiques les<br /> plus distingués d&#039;outre-Manche, et sir Walter<br /> Besant, le romancier bien connu, ont eu la<br /> courtoisie de m&#039;adresser sur cette intéressante<br /> question.<br /> Lisons d&#039;abord la lettre de M. Henry Arthur<br /> Jones. A sa mordante franchise, on y reconnaît<br /> l&#039;auteur des Masqwraders et du Triomphe des<br /> Philistins:<br /> &quot;Cher Monsieur,—En réponse a votre lettre,<br /> permettez-moi de déclarer qui ma cordiale sym-<br /> pathie est acquise aux auteurs français qui se<br /> plaignent que leurs œuvres soient mises à con-<br /> tribution et en état discrédit pour le théâtre<br /> anglais. Parmi les honnêtes gens, il ne saurait<br /> exister deux opinions sur cette matière. Que ce<br /> soit légal ou non, c&#039;est un vol : un honnête homme<br /> ne s&#039;appropriera jamais le mouchoir d&#039;un autre,<br /> même s&#039;il sait qu&#039;il ne sera pas traduit devant les<br /> tribunaux pour ce fait; il s&#039;appropriera encore<br /> moins le produit de la pensée d&#039;autrui.<br /> &quot;Je participerai cordialement à toute mesure<br /> tendant à protéger en Angleterre les droits légaux<br /> des auteurs français. En attendant, je ne saurai<br /> exprimer trop fortement mon dégoût pour un<br /> usage, qui est, en général, aussi préjudiciable aux<br /> intérêts du drame qu&#039;aux intérêts de l&#039;honnêteté<br /> internationale.<br /> &quot;Veuillez agréer, cher monsieur, etc.<br /> &quot;Henry Arthur Jones.&quot;<br /> La lettre plus détaillée de sir Walter Besant,<br /> l&#039;éminent romancier qui, depuis de longues années,<br /> s&#039;occupe activement de l&#039;amélioration des lois<br /> relatives aux droits d&#039;auteur, est non moins<br /> affirmative que celle de M. Henry Arthur Jones.<br /> La voici:<br /> &quot;Cher Monsieur,—La question de propriété<br /> littéraire en ce qui concerne la dramatisation d&#039;un<br /> roman est telle que vous l&#039;avez expliquée.<br /> L&#039;adaptateur est inattaquable devant la loi, si,<br /> en se servant du canevas, il ne se sert en même<br /> temps de la partie dialoguée du roman.<br /> &quot;La Société des Auteurs *t institué, en plusieurs<br /> occasions, des comités à l&#039;effet de preparer un bill<br /> sur la propriété littéraire. Une des clauses de ce<br /> 6/7/ interdit la dramatisation des romans. Ce bill<br /> a été lu déjà, en seconde lecture, par lord Monks-<br /> well, â la chambre des lords. Ceux-ci se décidèrent<br /> alors, bien inutilement, du reste, à instituer à leur<br /> tour une commission d&#039;enquête, chargée de rédiger<br /> un rapport sur des faits connus de tout le monde.<br /> Croira-t-on en France que cette commission ne<br /> tint aucun compte de l&#039;existence des auteurs?<br /> Elle se contenta de recueillir les témoignages de<br /> quelques éditeurs et ce fut tout.<br /> &quot;Après que j&#039;eus signalé dans la presse cette<br /> manque d&#039;égards à la littérature, la commission<br /> me convoqua incontinent et sans cérémonie devant<br /> elle. C&#039;était là un manque de courtoisie auquel<br /> je ne m&#039;attendais guère de la part d&#039;une com-<br /> mission nommée par les Lords. Comme je<br /> m&#039;étais toujours occupé cependant de l&#039;adminis-<br /> tration de la propriété littéraire par les éditeurs,<br /> et comme je ne faisais pas partie du &quot; copyright<br /> committee nommé par la Société des Auteurs, je<br /> n&#039;eus pas l&#039;occasion de me plaindre de cette<br /> impolitesse. Je refusai néanmoins de paraître<br /> comme témoin alléguant que je ne fusais pas<br /> partie de te comité.<br /> &quot;Le monde littéraire désire profondément re-<br /> médier, entre autres injustices, à celle dont il est<br /> ici question. Je doute cependant de l&#039;efficacité<br /> de nos efforts, du moins pour quelque temps<br /> encore. Il se présente, en effet, cette difficulté:<br /> la colonie du Canada, et je crois aussi l&#039;Australie,.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 115 (#127) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> réclament le droit de rédiger leurs propres lois<br /> sur la propriété littéraire. La promulgation d&#039;un<br /> bill en Angleterre pourrait donc susciter d&#039;acri-<br /> monieuses discussions relativement au droit de<br /> législation de la mère-patrie, et à celui reven-<br /> diqué par ses colonies, et le gouvernement actuel<br /> ne se souci guère de soulever de telles discussions.<br /> Le cas et des plus intéressants et je vous con-<br /> seille d&#039;y donner toute votre attention. Je n&#039;ai pas<br /> de doute que notre secrétaire, M. G. H. Thring,<br /> serait heureux de vous donner connaissance des<br /> point s principaux de la question, laquelle ne peut<br /> manquer d&#039;offrir un vif intérêt à vos compatriotes,<br /> toujours prêts à marquer aux hommes de lettres<br /> le respect que nos Lords ont jugé convenable de<br /> transmettre aux éditeurs.<br /> &quot;Soyez cependant assuré, cher monsieur, que<br /> nous ferons tout ce qui est en notre pouvoir,<br /> afin que la loi actuellement en vigueur soit<br /> revisée et que les droits d&#039;auteur d&#039;un roman<br /> soient respectés.<br /> &quot;Veuillez agréer, cher monsieur, etc.<br /> &quot;Walter Besant.&quot;<br /> Il importe de s&#039; arrêter ici sur un des passages<br /> les plus instructifs de la lettre de sir Walter<br /> Besant. C&#039;est celui qui a trait au bill lu en<br /> seconde lecture, par Lord Monkswell, à la<br /> Chambre des lords, le 1 1 mai 1891. Ce projet<br /> de loi, élaboré, comme nous le dit sir Walter<br /> Besant, sous les auspices de la Société des<br /> Auteurs de la Grande-Bretagne, contient l&#039;impor-<br /> tante clause qui suit:<br /> &quot;Comme il n&#039;existe aucune propriété sur les<br /> idées, il est facile de s&#039;approprier, sans commettre<br /> aucun acte attentatoire au droit d&#039;auteur, la<br /> trame entière d&#039;un roman et de la reproduire en<br /> fait sous forme dramatique. Nous proposons de<br /> déclarer ces actes qui, maintenant ne sont que<br /> moralement condamnables, ligalement punis-<br /> sables. . . .&quot;<br /> Pourquoi, depuis 1891, les législateurs de la<br /> Grande-Bretagne ne se sont-ils plus occupés du<br /> bill soumis par lord Monkswell &#039;t Sir Walter<br /> Besant nous donne la raison, assez convaincante<br /> du reste, que le gouvernement actuel ne désire<br /> guère soulever des discussions tendant à régler<br /> sur une nouvelle base les rapports de la métro-<br /> pole avec les colonies.<br /> En effet, une des dispositions du projet de loi<br /> lu par lord Monkswell accordait aux colonies la<br /> liberté de législation relativement à la propriété<br /> littéraire, et cela eût éf é, selon l&#039;opinion du comte<br /> de Kimberley et du lord-cbancelier, un achemine-<br /> ment vers la destruction de l&#039;unité de l&#039;empire<br /> britannique, au point de vue de la protection<br /> internationale de la propriété littéraire.<br /> L&#039;année dernière cependant, lord Monkswell<br /> revint de nouveau à l&#039;attaque et la Chambre des<br /> lords résolut de se réunir en comité secret afin<br /> de discuter le projet de loi, article par article. H<br /> est à espérer que les pairs d&#039;Angleterre nous<br /> feront bientôt connaître le résultat de leurs débats<br /> et que le bill sera renvoyé à la Chambre des com-<br /> munes, pour y recevoir force de loi. On ne saurait<br /> trop se hâter, car les tripatouiLkws continuent<br /> leur besogne. n T. Beatjgeard.<br /> Nous recevons la lettre suivante :—<br /> &quot;Saint-Lunaire (Ille-et-Vilaine),<br /> villa Caliban, 29 août 1898.<br /> &quot;Mon cher Nicolet,—Il y a d&#039;honnêtes gens<br /> dans les Lettres, et à Londres comme ailleurs.<br /> Deux de nos confrères d&#039;outre-Manche, M. Henry<br /> Arthur Jones et sir Walter Besant nous en<br /> donnent fièrement la preuve. J&#039;ai lu leurs lettres<br /> de réponse à la consultation de M. T. Beaugeard,<br /> le correspondant du Gaulois en Angleterre; elles<br /> me paraissent décisives. Au nom des principes<br /> de droiture communs à tous les peuples, et<br /> honneur de toutes les races, ces nobles esprits<br /> flétrissent la piraterie littéraire, sous quelque<br /> drapeau qui la couvre et dans quelques eaux<br /> qu&#039;on l&#039;exerce. Le débat est donc clos de ce côté<br /> par un arrêt de la simple conscience publique, et,<br /> elle aussi, grâce à Dieu, internationale.<br /> &quot;Il n&#039;y a plus qu&#039;à en attendre la sanction.—<br /> Cette sanction, écrit sir Walter Besant, ne dépend<br /> plus que de la Chambre des lords, déjà saisie<br /> par lord Monkswell de la question d&#039;ensemble de<br /> la propriété littéraire, question, ajoute-t-il, qui<br /> serait depuis longtemps résolue au gré des intérêts<br /> lésés, s&#039;il ne s&#039;y entremêlait point . . . de la<br /> politique !—Oh! cette politique que l&#039;on recontre<br /> partout où l&#039;on ne cherche que de la justice, quelle<br /> vie elle nous fait, et dans quelle Europe!<br /> &quot;Ici, le plus simple et le plus modeste droit des<br /> gens, id est: le droit au revenu de la propagation<br /> des fruits du talent et du travail, ne se heurterait<br /> plus, paraît-il, qu&#039;aux prétentions autonomiques<br /> de l&#039;Australie et du Canada, qui pourraient<br /> refuser le bénéfice même d&#039;une telle réforme<br /> parce qu&#039;elle émanerait de la jurisprudence<br /> anglaise et lui viendrait de la mère-patrie. Ces<br /> colonies, en effet, ne souffrent plus d&#039;autre<br /> législation que la leur, et la communauté de la<br /> langue ne leur impose pas la solidarité philo-<br /> logique.<br /> &quot;Si j&#039;entends bien sir Walter Besant, là serait<br /> le motif de la réserve des Lords et de leur retard<br /> à proposer aux communes les tables de la pro-<br /> priété littéraire garantie. Car, en effet, si<br /> l&#039;Australie et le Canada nous leurrent au moment<br /> où l&#039;Angleterre renonce à nous leurrer, si<br /> nos ouvrages paraissent, démarqués, non ré-<br /> munérés, volés enfin, à Sydney ou à Québec, en<br /> langue anglaise, au lieu d&#039;être publiés à Londres,<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 116 (#128) ############################################<br /> <br /> n6<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> la mere-patrie est dupe du marche, et son honneur<br /> lui reste pour compte. Mylords, le propre de<br /> l&#039;honneur est de rester pour compte. II me<br /> semble, d&#039;ailleurs, que l&#039;Angleterre est assez<br /> riche pour s&#039;en payer de gratuit, de l&#039;honneur qui<br /> demeure en fricbe et ne rapporte rien a ses<br /> seigneurs.<br /> &quot;Au resume, mon cher Nicolet, attendons un<br /> peu, puisque ce tres loyal et brave homme de<br /> Walter Besant nous convie a la patience, et<br /> fions-nous a lord Monkswell, qui travaille pour<br /> nous la probite anglo-saxonne. II est vrai que,<br /> d&#039;autre part, l&#039;avise correspondant du Gaulois<br /> nous presse de nous defendre contre le dd-<br /> bordement grandissant de ce qu&#039;il veut bien<br /> appeler, pour me flatter, le tripatouillage, de telle<br /> sorte que nous voila entre les deux conseils<br /> comme l&#039;ane de Buridan entre les deux picotins<br /> d&#039;avoine.<br /> &quot;Le plus sage serait, je crois, de provoquer un<br /> nouveau congres de Berne et de renouveler<br /> l&#039;essai d&#039;entente professionnelle de septembre<br /> 1887. Un grand poete, Charles Algernon<br /> Swinburne, universellement admire, pour l&#039;Angle-<br /> terre; le comte Leon Tolstoi, pour la Russie, et<br /> notre Victorien Sardou, ne refuseraient pas d&#039;en<br /> presider les seances, et les autres pays de l&#039;Tlnion<br /> s&#039;y feraient representer par des maitres nationaux<br /> non moins illustres et autorises, car il faut en<br /> finir peut-etre. J&#039;y invite de la part de sir<br /> Walter Besant le Canada et l&#039;Australie, et au<br /> nom de la presse francaise j&#039;y reinvite la Belgique,<br /> qui a adhere a la convention de Berne, mais dont<br /> un citoyen m&#039;ecrit, ce matin meme, de Bruxelles,<br /> &#039;En sept supplements de dimanche, cinq journaux<br /> bruxellois ont reproduit, sans en indiqu &lt; la<br /> source, souvent meme sans designation d&#039;aut . ,<br /> cent vingt-neuf articles, nouvelles ou chroniques<br /> du Journal, Gaulois, etc., etc&#039;<br /> &quot;Et ceci, ami Nicolet, est memorable<br /> &quot;Cordiales poignees de mains.<br /> &quot;Emile Bergerat.&quot;<br /> .?»•«*—<br /> THE DEMAND FOR CHEAP BOOKS IN<br /> AMERICA.<br /> THE article in a recent number of the New<br /> York Tribune on the subject of cheap<br /> books attracted much attention, and many<br /> people who read it believed (says that journal)<br /> that by placing wholesome literature on the<br /> market at reasonable prices the unclean books of<br /> the United States would be driven out of the<br /> market and would follow the &quot;penny dreadfuls&quot;<br /> of England.<br /> Mr. John Elderkin said that he agreed with Sir<br /> Walter Besant, and saw only good in cheap books<br /> of a superior kind. He said:<br /> &quot;It is now over twenty-five years since<br /> Donnelly, Lloyd, and Co., of Chicago, began the<br /> reprinting of standard novels in cheap paper<br /> quartos under the name of &#039;The Lakeside<br /> Library,&#039; in order to fill in the time in dull<br /> seasons, when their presses were unoccupied by<br /> commercial printing, which was the business<br /> carried on by the firm. It was fully a year<br /> before this enterprise attracted any attention,<br /> although the circulation of novels in this cheap<br /> form was constantly increasing and the New<br /> York people were growing restive at the probable<br /> results. I remember riding uptown in the street-<br /> car with J. W. Harper, jun., a noble man, who<br /> was at that time the head of the firm of Harper<br /> and Bros., and urging him to protect his library<br /> of select novels by beginning their reissue at<br /> once in similar form. Mr. Harper did not<br /> realise fully at that time the gravity of the<br /> situation, and it was not until after the &#039;Seaside<br /> Library&#039; had achieved a great success that the<br /> Harpers entered the field with their &#039; Franklin<br /> Square Library.&#039;<br /> &quot;The magnitude of the issue in cheap form of<br /> the standard novels is not realised by the pub-<br /> lishers of books in good bindings, or by the<br /> public generally. In the &#039; Seaside Library &#039; alone<br /> there were half a million copies sold of every<br /> one of Dickens&#039;s books during the first five<br /> years of their publication in that form. The<br /> novels of Sir Walter Scott, Amelia B. Edwards,<br /> Mrs. Henry Wood, &quot;Ouida,&quot; William M. Thacke-<br /> ray, Fenimore Cooper, W. Clark Russell, and all<br /> the popular novelists who have come on the<br /> stage since have enjoyed an enormous popu-<br /> larity through the facility and cheapness of<br /> manufacture and the low rate of postage, not to<br /> speak of the competition among publishers,<br /> which have combined to send their works over<br /> the country in almost incredible quantities,<br /> bringing them within the reach of rich and poor.<br /> Later have come the 10 cent magazines, which<br /> have had such great success, and which are a<br /> direct offshoot of the cheap library serials.<br /> &quot;I believe that the habit of reading and the<br /> number of readers of books in this country have<br /> been increased many fold by this good literature<br /> issued in cheap form. Now everybody reads<br /> books, and not even the daily newspapers, with<br /> their war extras and all the stimulating attrac-<br /> tions of pictures and coloured inks and blanket<br /> sheets, are able to counteract the strong desire<br /> on the part of the public for good fiction, which<br /> continues to sell in rather better form of paper<br /> and binding in enormous quantities. I think we<br /> have the greatest reading public in America<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 117 (#129) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> n7<br /> which has ever existed in the history of the<br /> world, and that the taste of this public is improv-<br /> ing and demands a higher quality of literary<br /> work and illustration. In the old library serials<br /> it was the really good novels that had the largest<br /> sale.<br /> &quot;That the better class of books has decreased<br /> the demand for all the class of literature which<br /> was formerly published in the dime novel series<br /> and in the weekly story papers is well known to<br /> all publishers of such matter. The dime novel<br /> business has absolutely passed out of existence.<br /> All the cheap weekly papers that have not<br /> materially changed their form and improved<br /> their literary contents and their illustrations have<br /> lost greatly in circulation. I could name a dozen<br /> authors who supplied the weekly press with the<br /> popular serials whose names were kuown from<br /> one end of the country to the other who are now<br /> almost forgotten and who have left no successors.<br /> Some of these writers had incomes of 10,000<br /> dollars a year. I once offered the late Mrs. May<br /> Agnes Fleming 75,000 dollars for ten stories,<br /> which offer was declined. There is no such<br /> demand for stories by writers of Mrs. Fleming&#039;s<br /> quality as would justify any publisher of a cheap<br /> weekly paper in paying more than 500 dollars for<br /> a serial by one of them. The indications ef the<br /> improvement in the taste of the public in reading<br /> matter crop out on every side, and, prices being<br /> equal, the majority of readers will take the better<br /> book. My experience of twenty-five years as an<br /> editor justifies me in saying that the average<br /> quality of literary matter offered in the weekly<br /> papers is higher, showing that literary cultiva-<br /> tion of aspirants has improved, and that the<br /> average intelligence and faculty of writing are<br /> advancing.<br /> &quot;I believe that books and libraries in this<br /> country are to enjoy still greater appreciation, and<br /> that we have been sowing seed in the last twenty-<br /> five years which will give to our publishers during<br /> the twentieth century an immensely remunerative<br /> business.&quot;<br /> Stephen F. Farrelly, manager of the American<br /> News Company, did not agree wholly with Mr.<br /> Elderkin as to the dislodgement of the low grade<br /> literature.<br /> &quot;Cheap books,&quot; he said, &quot; have stimulated the<br /> business and have made the sales larger every<br /> year, and have surely given those people who had<br /> the inclination an opportunity to read good books;<br /> but they have not driven the blood-and-thunder<br /> novels from the market. There is still a great<br /> demand for them, and I think it will continue for<br /> some time. There can be no doubt as to the<br /> improvement of the public taste through cheap<br /> books. This is shown by the great demand for<br /> the popular modern novels, somo of which have<br /> sold in phenomenal quantities.&quot;<br /> Mr. Farrelly said that standard works in cheap<br /> form could not be sold, and were really out of<br /> the market. People who want sets of Dickens,<br /> Scott, Thackeray, or other standard writers buy<br /> them for their libraries and want good and expen-<br /> sive editions; but new English novels and<br /> popular translations are wanted in cheap form.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—His First Play.<br /> I&#039;VE been for some years the at once happy<br /> and unhappy author of a first play. You&#039;ll<br /> have guessed rightly that my happiness<br /> arises from my appreciation of the merits of that<br /> play, but you&#039;ll have guessed wrongly that my<br /> unhappiness arises from want of equal apprecia-<br /> tion on the part of managers. &quot;It&#039;s wus nor<br /> that&quot;: I&#039;m unhappy because it seems to me use-<br /> less to offer the piece to a manager at all—and<br /> I&#039;ve never yet done so.<br /> It&#039;s in two acts, contains nine scenes, and—as<br /> far as I can judge from reading it aloud, and<br /> allowing time for &quot;business&quot; and scene-shifting<br /> —would take about an hour and a quarter,<br /> certainly not over an hour and a half. Now, it<br /> used to be common for a manager to give three<br /> pieces in an evening, and usually one of them,<br /> often two, would be of middle length. But the<br /> middle-length piece seems to have disappeared<br /> altogether. The entire performance now consists<br /> either of a single play taking three hours, or of<br /> two plays, of which the first takes only from half<br /> to three-quarters of an hour, while the second<br /> takes from two and a quarter to two and a half<br /> hours.<br /> I can&#039;t either shorten or lengthen the play<br /> without injuring it. And, rather than do that,<br /> I&#039;d print it as a piece of literature, and never try<br /> to get it acted at all. But, if I wait ten years, is<br /> there any chance that the middle-length piece<br /> will have its day again? Or is there possibly<br /> even now a manager here and there in this<br /> country, or in America, who&#039;d take such plays if<br /> he could get them to his mind? If so, where or<br /> how may he be found?<br /> I&#039;ve been asked &quot;Why don&#039;t you print it?<br /> That wouldn&#039;t prevent its being played after-<br /> wards.&quot; But wouldn&#039;t it? Wouldn&#039;t a manager<br /> think its freshness lost? Of course, if I did<br /> print it, probably only a few dozen people would<br /> ever see it; but the manager wouldn&#039;t know that<br /> —or, if he did know it, he might be so unac-<br /> quainted with the habits of the reading public as<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 118 (#130) ############################################<br /> <br /> n8<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> to suppose that the number of its readers must<br /> bear some relation to its interest.<br /> But is there any objection to printing &quot;for<br /> private circulation only,&quot; and sending in that<br /> form to managers for their consideration? And<br /> would there be any harm in sending to reviews<br /> as well, for the purpose of obtaining press<br /> opinions which might help to get the piece pro-<br /> duced? Van Drusen.<br /> II.—Cheap Literature—An Echo from a<br /> Bookseller.<br /> Do not worry about the man who win sell a<br /> magazine at $d. Some people were alarmed<br /> when Mr. Stead supplied the best of all litera-<br /> ture at one penny per volume. He sold them, I<br /> suppose, in millions. We stocked them, and<br /> sold hundreds of some numbers for the first dozen<br /> or so; then we had less call for them, the novelty<br /> had worn off.<br /> Lawyers could have plenty of work at a penny<br /> a letter, but their fee is 3*. \d.<br /> Authors, don&#039;t worry! Get as much as you<br /> can for your work. If you give men your brains<br /> they won&#039;t appreciate it, and if Harmsworth<br /> was to give his magazine away he would not get<br /> all the custom; and if the Nineteenth Century<br /> was a penny a time very few more people would<br /> read it.<br /> There must be people to provide &quot;all sorts and<br /> conditions of men&quot; with the literature they<br /> want, and it is the lucky man who can read<br /> what the public really want, and can afford to do<br /> it at a price that will suit the pocket s of those he<br /> caters for. Get a shilling magazine as much<br /> worth is. as Harmsworth&#039;s, and it will sell pro-<br /> portionately well. nii J. P.<br /> III.—Typewritten Manuscripts (?).<br /> As a new member, may I ask if any notice of<br /> what would appear a contradiction in terms, has<br /> up to now been taken in your columns? I refer<br /> to the term used by editors &quot; type-written manu-<br /> script*.&quot; Now, if a MS. be type-written it is quite<br /> evident that it cannot claim to being manuscript.<br /> Perhaps it seems a small matter, but surely our<br /> langua.e is not so poor, as be obliged to keep to<br /> the old term, when such an order of things has<br /> almost passed away.<br /> Permit me to make clearer my meaning. Pub-<br /> lishers advertise sometimes after this manner, as<br /> do also editors—<br /> 1. Type-written manuscripts (?) will receive<br /> careful attention,&quot; or<br /> 2. &quot;Manuscripts of all kinds will receive con-<br /> sideration, &amp;c.&quot;<br /> Alas! for the writer who knows no better, his<br /> beautifully Aanrf-written MS. receives but a<br /> passing glance—unless his writing is already<br /> well-known to the reader—many publishers not<br /> troubling to read books or articles unless type-<br /> written. Now, beginners are not all aware of this<br /> fact. Would not it be to the credit of the Society<br /> of Authors to put right this little matter?<br /> Auden Amyand.<br /> IV.—Amateur Journals.<br /> I have read with interest the correspondence on<br /> this subject, and while I believe that amateur<br /> journalism is no occupation for adults, I am<br /> assured from my own experience of it that very<br /> many writers of eminence have made their first<br /> bows to a reading public (small, but enthusiastic<br /> perhaps) by its means. As a child&#039;s toys predict<br /> the future tastes of the man, so does association<br /> with amateur journalism—in the youthful—<br /> indicate a natural inborn love of literature.<br /> The mature amateur journalist avows incom-<br /> petency and vanity since he would gladly join the<br /> ranks of paid writers had he talent enough for<br /> the purpose, but not being able to encompass this<br /> object, gratifies his conceit by gratuitous con-<br /> tributions to whatsoever publications will accept<br /> them.<br /> &quot;No man but a blockhead ever wrote except<br /> for money,&quot; observed Dr. Johnson. Amateur<br /> writers of years of discretion should ponder upon<br /> it awhile.<br /> The inclosed little production I venture to<br /> send for your inspection, in which I am un-<br /> certain whether to take pride or shame after the<br /> lapse of intervening years, but over which I was<br /> at the time greatly busied, sufficed to introduce<br /> at least one young scribbler to print, whose book-<br /> lets are now familiar in our mouths as household<br /> words, and whose personality is pronounced in the<br /> London world of letters. The list of contributors<br /> will, I am sure, prove very interesting as years<br /> roll on.<br /> Meanwhile the editor is striving to emulate the<br /> successes of one or two of his staff.<br /> As Miss M. L. Pendered says, a magazine for<br /> young—necessarily amateur—writers, conducted<br /> by a professional editor, sympathetic and dis-<br /> criminating, might act with wholesome effect on<br /> the rising generation of writers; but its circula-<br /> tion would be restricted to the contributors and<br /> those interested in their work. To the general<br /> public their names would still remain unknown.<br /> Herbert W. Smith.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 119 (#131) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> n9<br /> BOOK TALE.<br /> DEAN STUBBS has written for the Vic-<br /> torian Era series a work entitled&quot; Charles<br /> Kingsley and the Christian Social Move-<br /> ment.&quot; The book will contain two poems by<br /> Kingsley, which were originally published anony-<br /> mously in the group of tracts called &quot; Politics for<br /> the People,&quot; and which have not appeared in the<br /> .collected edition of Kingsley. Messrs. Blackie<br /> will publish the book next month.<br /> A series of twelve books, furnishing a view of<br /> the world in 1900, is projected by Mr. Heine-<br /> oiann, under the editorship of Professor H. J.<br /> Mackinder. The first will be published at the<br /> beginning of next year, and the whole series will<br /> be completed early in 1900. Among the volumes<br /> and their authors are the following: &quot;Britain<br /> and the North Atlantic,&quot; by Professor Mackinder;<br /> &quot;Scandinavia and the Arctic Ocean,&quot; by Sir<br /> Clement R. Markham; &quot;France and the Mediter-<br /> ranean,&quot; by M. Elisce Eeclus; &quot;Central Europe,&quot;<br /> by Professor Joseph Partsch; &quot;Africa,&quot; by Dr.<br /> J. Scott Keltie; &quot;The Near East,&quot; by Mr . D. G.<br /> Hogarth; &quot;The Far East,&quot; by Mr. Archibald<br /> Little; &quot;The Russian Empire,&quot; by Prince Kro-<br /> potkin; &quot;India,&quot; by Colonel Sir Thomas Holdich;<br /> and &quot; Australasia and Antarctics,&quot; by Dr. H. 0.<br /> Forbes.<br /> Mr. Harry Quilter is about to start business as<br /> publisher, with a view of filling the place left<br /> vacant by the death of William Morris and the<br /> closing of the Kelmscott Press. Fine art works<br /> will be his chief mitier, but he will also publish<br /> novels and general works, in which the printing,<br /> design, decoration, and binding will be made a<br /> feature. The first book from Mr. Quilter will<br /> appear next month.<br /> Mr. John Davidson&#039;s long-expected new lite-<br /> rary play will be published by Mr. Lane this<br /> month.<br /> &quot;The New Rorne &quot; is the title of a volume of<br /> verse by Mr. Robert Buchanan, which is to appear<br /> shortly.<br /> Miss Helen Hay, daughter of the American<br /> Ambassador, will bring out in London this<br /> autumn, through Messrs. Duckworth, a volume<br /> of poems, with the title &quot; Some Verses.&quot;<br /> A new volume of stories, by Ian Maclaren, will<br /> appear during the autumn from Messrs. Hodder<br /> and Stoughton.<br /> Mr. Crockett&#039;s Graphic serial, &quot; The Red Axe,&quot;<br /> will be published shortly by Messrs. Smith, Elder,<br /> and Co. A new serial by him will begin in the<br /> Cornhill for 1899.<br /> A new edition of the works of Whyte-Melville<br /> is being edited by Sir Herbert Maxwell, for pub-<br /> lication by Messrs. Thacker.<br /> Mr. J. W. Headlam, of Cambridge, is preparing<br /> a volume on Bismarck and the new German<br /> Empire, which Messrs. Putnam will publish.<br /> Mr. William Jacks, formerly M. P. for Stirling-<br /> shire, who published a translation of Lessing&#039;s<br /> &quot;Nathan &quot; four years ago, has for some time been<br /> engaged upon a life of Bismarck, which will<br /> appear shortly.<br /> Two forthcoming biographies which will appeal<br /> to ecclesiastical readers are the Life and Letters<br /> of Dr. Henry Robert Eeynolds, by his sisters, and<br /> an account of the late Dr. Stoughton&#039;s career, by<br /> his daughter. Both will be brought out by<br /> Messrs. Hodder and Stoughton. A third work of<br /> similar interest is the Life of the Master of<br /> Uppingham, the Bev. Edward Thring, which has<br /> been written by his friend, Mr. George B. Parkin,<br /> Headmaster of the Collegiate School, Frederiekton,<br /> New Brunswick, and will be published shortly by<br /> Messrs. Macmillan. The life of Professor<br /> Henry Drummond, by Professor George Adam<br /> Smith, and that of the Rev. Dr. Dale, by his son,<br /> Mr. A. W. Dale, both to be published also by<br /> Messrs. Hodder and Stoughton, are other<br /> interesting contributions to the leligious bio-<br /> graphies of the year.<br /> For the art interest, the book of this autumn<br /> will be the memoir of Sir John Millais, which<br /> has been done by his son, Mr. J. G. Millais,<br /> assisted by the copious diaries and notes kept<br /> methodically by the late President of the Royal<br /> Academy.<br /> Mr. Justin McCarthy has written a short<br /> history of the United States, designed for Eng-<br /> lish readers. It will come shortly from Messrs.<br /> Hodder and Stoughton.<br /> Mr. George Gissing is editing an issue of<br /> Dickens&#039;s works for Messrs. Methuen.<br /> The last story written by the late Mr. James<br /> Payn is believed to be that which a &quot; Christmas<br /> Tree,&quot; to be published by Messrs. Downey, will<br /> contain. It will be side by side in the volume<br /> with contributions by Miss Braddon, Mr. Frankfort<br /> Moore, Mr. Christie Murray, Mr. Baring Gould,<br /> Mr. G. Manville Fenn, and others.<br /> A new novel by Mr. Anthony Hope is to begin<br /> its serial appearance after Christmas, the title<br /> being &quot; The King&#039;s Mirror,&quot; and the hero a royal<br /> lad, whose nurse not only imparts to him an<br /> idea of his greatness as a born king, but spanks<br /> him.<br /> Sportswomen are about to have a library for<br /> themselves. Miss Frances Slaughter is editing a<br /> series of volumes in which Mrs. Burn, daughter<br /> of Colonel Anstruther Thomson, writes on fox-<br /> hunting, Mrs. Penn Curzon, whose father was<br /> formerly master of the Devon and Somerset<br /> Staghounds, on stag hunting, and Susan, Countess<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 120 (#132) ############################################<br /> <br /> 120<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> of Malmesbury, on angling, while other noted<br /> sportswomen deal with various fields. There are<br /> to be two volumes at present, and possibly a<br /> third afterwards in this Sportswoman&#039;s Library,<br /> which Messrs. Constable are to publish, and<br /> which will be dedicated to the Countess of<br /> Worcester.<br /> One of the most popular books of this year is<br /> likely to be the biography of the late &quot;Lewis<br /> Carroll,&quot; the children&#039;s favourite, which has been<br /> written by his nephew, Mr. S. D. Collingwood,<br /> and will be published at a moderate price by Mr.<br /> Fisher Unwin. It will be illustrated by many of<br /> his own sketches. Mr. Dodgson in his early years<br /> compiled three magazines, in manuscript, in<br /> which the genius which was afterwards to be<br /> shown in &quot; Alice in Wonderland,&quot; is exhibited in<br /> little. There is also the record of a Russian<br /> tour with Canon Liddon, and new portraits<br /> of Mr. Ruskin, Tennyson, the Rossettis, Mr.<br /> Holman Hunt, Mr. George Macdonald, and<br /> others.<br /> Official people will be interested in the life of<br /> the late Mr. Henry Cecil Baikes, Postmaster-<br /> General, which is written by Mr. St. John Raikes<br /> and will be published this autumn.<br /> The new novel by Mrs. Edna Lyall, which is to<br /> appear this month, is laid in Keswick and London<br /> during the seventeenth century. &quot;Hope the<br /> Hermit&quot; is its title, and among the real<br /> characters who are introduced are George Fox<br /> and Archbishop Tillotson.<br /> A volume of essays on the philosophy of<br /> religion, by Mr. T. Bailey Saunders, will appear<br /> shortly.<br /> An interesting contribution to the literature<br /> on the pre-Baphaelite movement is about to be<br /> published. It will be Mr. Ruskin&#039;s letters to<br /> Rossetti between the years 1852 and 1867, which<br /> relate to various subjects, but are mainly con-<br /> nected with art. The volume, which is edited by<br /> Mr. William Rossetti and published by Mr.<br /> George Allen, will also contain letters by Brown-<br /> ing, Bell Scott, Coventry Patmore, and others.<br /> Mr. Euskin enjoys good health.<br /> &quot;The Life of William Morris,&quot; by Mr. J. W.<br /> Mackail, will appear this autumn from Messrs.<br /> Longmans.<br /> A study by Mr. Sheridan Pureell, of Cardinal<br /> Newman as Anglican and as Catholic, will be<br /> published by Messrs. Macmillan.<br /> A novel by Mr. A. J. Dawson, dealing with<br /> Moorish life in the Riff country, and in Tangier,<br /> and entitled &quot; Bismillah,&quot; is to be published in a<br /> few days by Messrs. Macmillan.<br /> Miss Charlotte M. Yonge has written a history<br /> of the parishes of Hursley and Otterbourne, which<br /> Messrs. Macmillan will publish.<br /> A biography of Sir Astley Cooper Key, by<br /> Admiral Colomb, is among Messrs. Methuen&#039;s<br /> forthcoming books.<br /> A new threepenny magazine is to follows fast on<br /> the appearance of the Harmsworth, and in the<br /> same field. A million copies of the Royal<br /> Magazine, as it is to be called, will be printed and<br /> out by Oct. 14. Messrs. Pearson are the firm to<br /> publish it. It is eloquent of the scale upon which<br /> such things are done, that Messrs. Pearson pro-<br /> pose to spend .£20,000 in advertising the maga-<br /> zine, and to put aside £50,000 which they are pre-<br /> pared to exhaust to run it. The Harmsworth<br /> last month, by the way, raises its price to $\d. in<br /> order to give the booksellers a working profit.<br /> A sixpenny magazine for girls is also being<br /> started this month. It will be called the GrirVs<br /> Realm, and the publishers are Messrs. Hutchin-<br /> son.<br /> &quot;Paterson&#039;s Parish, a Lifetime Amongst the<br /> Dissenters,&quot; by the Rev. Dr. Joseph Parker, of<br /> the City Temple, will be published in October by<br /> Mr. Thomas Burleigh.<br /> A story of peasant life in the Ardennes entitled<br /> &quot;God is Love,&quot; by Mr. T. Mullett Ellis, author<br /> of &quot; Tales of the Klondyke,&quot; will be published<br /> very shortly by Mr. Thomas Burleigh.<br /> An unconventional novel, entitled &quot;A Social<br /> Upheaval,&quot; by Isidore G. Ascher, will be pub-<br /> lished in the early autumn by Messrs. Lawrence<br /> Greening and Co. The book will present certain<br /> aspects of socialism in a novel and humorous<br /> manner, with a background of strong sensational<br /> incidents.<br /> &quot;The Main Chance,&quot; by Miss Christabel Cole-<br /> ridge, which has been running through the<br /> Monthly Packet for 1898, will be brought out in<br /> one volume form by Messrs. Hurst and Blackett.<br /> during the autumn.<br /> Messrs. Chapman and Hall have in the press a<br /> work by Mr. A. Eedcote Dewar on &quot;From<br /> Matter to Man : a New Theory of the Universe.&quot;<br /> The work demonstrates in detail the natural<br /> evolution of man, life and mind; the arguments,<br /> being backed by a wealth of illustration from<br /> every department of science.<br /> Mr. Herbert Morrah, author of &quot; The Faithful<br /> City,&quot; published last year by Messrs. Methuen„<br /> has a new novel ready. The book is entitled<br /> &quot;The Optimist,&quot; and will appear during the<br /> present month. Messrs. Pearson are the pub-<br /> lishers.<br /> Professor Skeat has nearly completed his<br /> edition of &quot;jElfric&#039;s Saints&#039; Lives,&quot; printed for<br /> the Early English Text Society. This edition,,<br /> begun nearly seventeen years ago, is founded on<br /> MS. Julius E. 7, in the British Museum, and con-<br /> tains about thirty-seven Homilies, most of which<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 121 (#133) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 121<br /> are here printed for the first time. -SUlfric&#039;s<br /> Homilies, originally written at the close of the<br /> tenth century, were re-transcribed and imitate 1<br /> during nearly two centuries, and he is therefore<br /> justly regarded as the father of early English<br /> prose, for which reason his name is worthy of<br /> being held in honour by students of pure<br /> English.<br /> A new book by the Poet Laureate will appear<br /> shortly. The title is &quot; Lamia&#039;s Winter Quarters.&quot;<br /> Mr. Wasey Sterry leads off, with a volume on<br /> Eton, a series of histories of our great public<br /> schools by various writers, which Messrs. Methuen<br /> have projected.<br /> We summarise as follows a number of works of<br /> fiction which are announced: &quot;Windy Haugh,&quot;<br /> by Graham Travers (Blackwood); &quot;The Phan-<br /> tom Army,&quot; by Mr. Max Pemberton; and<br /> &quot;Despair&#039;s Last Journey,&quot; by Mr. David Christie<br /> Murray (Pearson); &quot;Rodman, the Boat-Steerer,&quot;<br /> by Mr. Louis Becke, and &quot;The Romance of a<br /> Midshipman,&quot; by Mr. Clark Russell (Unwin);<br /> &quot;The Battle of the Strong,&quot; a romance of 1798,<br /> by Mr. Gilbert Parker.<br /> Mrs. Gertrude Atherton is just publishing,<br /> through Mr. Lane, a story entitled &quot;The Cali-<br /> fornians,&quot; and in the spring a short novel called<br /> &quot;A Daughter of the Vine&quot; will be published<br /> from her pen.<br /> Mr. George Laurence Gomme is extending his<br /> studies in the way of illustrating periods of<br /> history by the means of romantic literature. A<br /> year ago he edited some specimens of this kind in<br /> English history, calling the volume &quot; The King&#039;s<br /> Story Book.&quot; He is editing Constable&#039;s Library<br /> of Historical Novels and Romances (which has<br /> been coming out at somewhat long intervals) in<br /> which are Lord Lytton&#039;s &quot;Harold, the Last of<br /> the Saxon Bangs,&quot; Charles Macfarlane&#039;s &quot;The<br /> Camp of Refuge,&quot; and Kingsley&#039;s &quot;Westward<br /> Ho! Mr. Gomme is now editing a Tolume to<br /> be called &quot;The Queen&#039;s Story Book,&quot; which<br /> will begin with the Battle of Hastings, and end<br /> with the Chartist riots, and contain examples<br /> selected from Scott, Thackeray, Lytton, Galt,<br /> Ainsworth, Defoe, Peacock, Beaeonsfield, and<br /> other writers.<br /> The International Press Congress at Lisbon has<br /> just finished its work, and we hope to give some<br /> account of its sittings in our November issue<br /> from the pen of Mr. James Baker. This writer,<br /> who was in September acting as special corre-<br /> spondent in Holland at Queen Wilhelmina&#039;s<br /> installation, his articles appearing in the Pall<br /> Mall Gazette and the Queen, is now in Lisbon.<br /> He has just seen the last sheets of his new novel<br /> through the press. This is of the same period as<br /> his last work, &quot; The Gleaming Dawn,&quot; but does<br /> not deal with the religious struggles of the 15th<br /> century; it is a story of adventure.<br /> Mr. Michael MacDonagh proposes t:i do for<br /> Irish wit and humour in his book, &quot; Irish Life and<br /> Character,&quot; which Messrs. Hodder and Stoughton<br /> will shortly publish, what Dean Ramsay in his<br /> popular work &quot;Reminiscences of Scottish Life<br /> and Character&quot; has done for Scotland. It will<br /> be the first attempt which has been made to give<br /> a complete picture of the manners, customs, and<br /> ways of thought of the Irish people, illustrated<br /> by copious anecdote and the personal experiences<br /> of the author.<br /> Among forthcoming novels is one by Mr. James<br /> M. Graham, whose historical romance, &quot;The Son<br /> of the Czar,&quot; took a conspicuous place among the<br /> successful books of last year. Mr. Graham&#039;s<br /> new story is called &quot;A World Bewitched.&quot; As<br /> the title indicates, the subject dealt with is that<br /> most painful of superstitions which was almost<br /> universal among Christians a few centuries ago.<br /> There were men of commanding genius, men. like<br /> Rabelais, Montaigne, Shakespeare, who heartily<br /> despised the prevailing belief in witchcraft. There<br /> were sceptics of a more sinister kiud, who, from<br /> motives of gain, vengeance, or delight in human<br /> wretchedness, took advantage of the general<br /> credulity to keep the fires of the stake in constant<br /> activity; and the sceptics last referred to figure<br /> prominently in Mr. Graham&#039;s tale. The period<br /> chosen is the early part of the 17th century.<br /> The scene is laid in the neighbourhood of the<br /> Pyrenees. The publishers will be Messrs. Harper<br /> and Brothers.<br /> PUBLICATIONS OF THE YEAR 1397.<br /> LE DROIT D&#039;AUTEUR &quot; gives the follow-<br /> ing statistics for the year 1897 in an<br /> extremely interesting article containing<br /> a mass of information, for which we must refer<br /> our readers to the pages of our valuable con-<br /> temporary:<br /> Great Britain—<br /> New books<br /> New edition,..<br /> Total<br /> United Sea tea<br /> France<br /> Germany<br /> Italy<br /> Holland<br /> Denmark<br /> Norway<br /> Sweden .<br /> 1896.<br /> 1897.<br /> 1<br /> 5234<br /> 6244<br /> 1339<br /> 1682<br /> 6573<br /> 7926<br /> 5703<br /> 4928<br /> 12,738<br /> 13.799<br /> 23,861<br /> 23.339<br /> 9778<br /> 9732<br /> 2880<br /> 1128<br /> 1167<br /> S77<br /> 529<br /> 1506<br /> 1642.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 122 (#134) ############################################<br /> <br /> I 22<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> It will be remarked that the United States<br /> «hows a diminution. Austria and Russia have<br /> made no returns. Those for Hungary have not<br /> advanced beyond 1895 (1407).<br /> The analyst of the publications of the United<br /> States presents several interesting features:—<br /> Works by authors<br /> of other nationalities<br /> printed iu the<br /> United S a&#039;es.<br /> New Publications.<br /> Works by American<br /> authors.<br /> s<br /> ■<br /> n<br /> 11<br /> 0<br /> 3d<br /> O<br /> 0<br /> m<br /> ■<br /> k<br /> 0<br /> K<br /> &gt;5<br /> 713<br /> 156<br /> 358<br /> 352<br /> «59<br /> 474<br /> 35<br /> 491<br /> —<br /> 18<br /> 447<br /> 45<br /> 376<br /> 23<br /> 93<br /> Educational<br /> 395<br /> 36<br /> 385<br /> 4<br /> 42<br /> Literary history and<br /> 261<br /> &#039;54<br /> 313<br /> ■5<br /> 87<br /> 3&#039;9<br /> 50<br /> 299<br /> 9<br /> 61<br /> 175<br /> 21<br /> 155<br /> 2<br /> 39<br /> 180<br /> 67<br /> ■34<br /> 29<br /> 84<br /> 166<br /> 22<br /> 116<br /> 7<br /> 65<br /> History<br /> 189<br /> 49<br /> 180<br /> 11<br /> 47<br /> Biography<br /> 193<br /> 12<br /> 71<br /> 22<br /> 112<br /> 129<br /> 24<br /> 132<br /> 3<br /> 18<br /> Travels<br /> 149<br /> 20<br /> 99<br /> 9<br /> 61<br /> Fine arts and illus-<br /> trated works<br /> 108<br /> 3«<br /> 11<br /> 4<br /> 124<br /> Mechanical arts ...<br /> 96<br /> H<br /> 82<br /> 28<br /> Philosophy<br /> 70<br /> 6<br /> 47<br /> 4<br /> 25<br /> Domestic and rural<br /> economy<br /> 52<br /> 5<br /> 35<br /> —<br /> 22<br /> Comic and satirical<br /> 33<br /> 5<br /> 19<br /> —<br /> 24<br /> 17<br /> 5<br /> 15<br /> 1<br /> 6<br /> Total<br /> 4171<br /> 757<br /> 3?i8<br /> 495<br /> i&quot;5<br /> OBITUARY.<br /> WE regret to announce the death of the<br /> Earl of Desart. His lordship caught a<br /> cold while on board his yacht at Wendur,<br /> and died a few days later—on September 15—<br /> from internal inflammation. He had been an<br /> invalid for many years, and was fifty-three years<br /> of age. William Ulick O&#039;Connor Cuffe, the late<br /> Earl of Desart, was the fourth Earl, and was a<br /> son of the third Earl and of a daughter of the<br /> first Earl Cawdor. He succeeded his father in<br /> 1865, and married Ellen, daughter of H. L.<br /> Bischoffsheim, of Bute House, South Audley-<br /> street, London. He was the author of numerous<br /> novels, including &quot;Children of Nature,&quot; &quot;Kelver-<br /> .dale,&quot; &quot;Helen&#039;s View,&quot; &quot;Lord and Lady<br /> Piccadilly,&quot; &quot;Love and Pride on an Iceberg,&quot;<br /> and others, his last work being &quot;The Raid of<br /> the Detrimental,&quot; which was published by Messrs.<br /> Pearson last year. He also did a little in<br /> journalism. His death makes the second loss<br /> within a few months to the Council of the<br /> Society of Authors, of which the late Earl was<br /> a member for ten years. The remains were<br /> interred on Monday, the 19th ult., at Lord<br /> Falmouth&#039;s picturesquely situated little cemetery.<br /> The coffin was borne to the graveside by eight<br /> y a chtsmen. The chief mourners were the Countess<br /> of Desart, the Hon. Sir J. Hamilton, and Lady<br /> Margaret Cuffe, Major and Lady Kathleen<br /> Pilkington, Captain the Hon. Otway Cuffe, the<br /> Hon. A. E. Henniker, and Mrs. Wemyss.<br /> THE BOOKS OF THE MONTH.<br /> [August 24 to Sept. 23.—304 Books.]<br /> Adcock, A. St. J. In the Image of God 3/6. Skefflngton.<br /> Alexander, A. Physical Training at Home. 2/- net. Cox.<br /> Anderson. R. J. Hereiity. 1/2. Galway: M. Claytosu<br /> Andom, R. Martha and I. 3/6. Jarrold.<br /> Andrews, S. J. Christianity and anil-Christianity in their Final Con-<br /> Iliet. 0- Putnam.<br /> Andrews, William. Bygone Punishments. 7/6. Andrews.<br /> Anonymous. A Bitter Penitence. 1/6. Stevens.<br /> Anonymous. Booke of Sundry Draughtes, principalv serving for<br /> Glasiers, and not impertinent for Plasterers and Gardiners, Ac.<br /> 10,6. Reprint of original 1615 edition. Leadenhall Press.<br /> Anonymous (Author of &quot;Bertha&#039;s Fate&quot;). Knight or Knave? 1/6.<br /> Stevens.<br /> Anonymous (E. A. D.). Gift of Best. 1/- Frowde.<br /> Anonymous (An Expert Oil Refiner). Oils, Tallow, and Grease, for<br /> Lubricatira, Ac. 7/6 net. Scott and Greenwood.<br /> Anonymous (E. E H.). Allie. or The Little Irish Girl. 1/6. Gall.<br /> Anonymous (A German Staff Officer). Greco-Turkish War of 1897.<br /> Tr. by Frederica Bolton. 5/- Sonnenschein.<br /> Anonymous (Auth ir of &quot; Laddie &quot;). Belle. 3/6. Chambers.<br /> Anonymous. Elizabeth and her German Garden. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Arnold, D Tales and Rhymes for Happy Times. 2/6. Bel. Tract Soc.<br /> Arnold, T. Notes on Beowulf. 3/6. Longmans.<br /> Asplen, L O. A Thousand Years of English Church History. *7-<br /> net. Bell.<br /> Avery, H. The Triple Alliance. A Tale 3/6. Nelson.<br /> Bslfour, Andrew. To Arms! 6/- Methuen.<br /> Ballard, S (tr.) Fairy Tales from Far Japan. 2/6. Bel. Tract Soc.<br /> 1&#039;ankea, A. Essays and Enigmas. 2/6. Partridge.<br /> Barlow, Jane. From the East unto the West. A Novel. 6/- Methuen.<br /> Barnby, L. H. Some Elementary Remarks on Musical Theory. 1/-<br /> Weekes.<br /> Barrett, G. S. Musings for Quiet Hours. 1/6. Rel. Tract Soc<br /> ^arrows, S. J. The Isles and Shrines of Greece. 8/6. Low.<br /> Bedford, H. L. The Twins that did not Pair. 2/- Bel. Tract 8oc.<br /> Bell, Mackenzie. Pictures of Travel, and other Pi<br /> 7/6.<br /> 3/6. Hurst.<br /> Cath. Truth Soc<br /> White.<br /> Banks.<br /> 7/6. Cox.<br /> Ward and L.<br /> Oliphant.<br /> Low.<br /> Bellord. Meditations on Christian Dogma.<br /> Bentley, H. C. A Near Thing, Ac. 1/-<br /> Berry, G. J. Iscah: A Tale for the Times. 3/6.<br /> Bickerdyke, John. Practical Letters to Young Se<br /> Bird. M. The Seeker. 1/-<br /> Black, M. M. Robert Louis Stevenson. 1/6.<br /> Black, William. Wild Eelin. 6/-<br /> Blake, E. On the Study of the Hand for Indications of General<br /> Disease 2/6 net. H. J. Glaisher.<br /> Block, Louis J. Oapriccios. 5/- Putnam.<br /> Blunt, Wilfrid. The Poetry of. Selected and arranged by W. E.<br /> Henley and George Wyndham. 6/- Heinemann.<br /> Bosanquet, Mrs. B. The Standard of Life, and Other Studies. 3/6<br /> net Macmillan.<br /> Brassey. T. A. The Royal Naval Reserve, the Mercantile Marine, and<br /> the Colonies. 1/- Stanford.<br /> Rrocklehurst, F. I was in Prison. 2/6 net. Cnwin.<br /> Brodrick, Hon. Mrs. A. Ananias: A Novel. 6/- Methuen.<br /> Brooke, Emma. Factory Laws of European Countries in so far as<br /> they relate to Women and Children. 2/6 net Richards.<br /> Biuce, C. Birthday Book of Proverbs. 1/- W. P. Nimmo.<br /> Bryant, Sophie. The Teaching of Christ. 2/6. Sonnenschein.<br /> Burchard, H. H. A Text.Book of Dental Pathology and Therapeutics.<br /> 22/- net. H. Kimpton.<br /> Burns, D. Temperance in the Victorian Age. 1/- Ideal Publishing<br /> Union.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 123 (#135) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 123-<br /> Barrel 1, A. He*r Speaking and Good Beading. 2/6. Longmans.<br /> Batch, Dr. M. Bismarck: Some Secret Pages of his Hhvory. 30/-<br /> net. Macmillan<br /> Butler, W, C. Modern Practical Confectioner. 1/- net.<br /> Caine, O. V. Face to Face with Napoleon. 5/-<br /> Caird. Mona. The Pathway of the Hods. 6/-<br /> Campion. H. The Secret of the Poles. 1/- net<br /> Simpkin.<br /> Niabet.<br /> Skjfflngton.<br /> Birmingham: tVhite<br /> and Price.<br /> Constable.<br /> Arrowsmitb.<br /> Hutchfnson.<br /> Hodges.<br /> Rivington.<br /> Putnam.<br /> Cassell.<br /> Tract Soc.<br /> Wesley.<br /> Unwin.<br /> The Rights<br /> Longmans.<br /> From the<br /> Quaritch.<br /> Wesley.<br /> Campbell, W. D Beyond the Border. 6/-<br /> Capes, Bernard. The Mysterious Singer. I/-<br /> Carey. RosaN MolhVs Prince. 6/-<br /> Carv. U. H. Key to Elementary Book-keeping by Double Entry.<br /> 3/6. S mpkln.<br /> Cave. R. H. The Church and the Prayer-Book. 1/- net.<br /> Cheriton, W. W. A Simplified Euclid. Book I. 1/6.<br /> Cheyne. T. K Jewish Religious Life after the Exile, 6/-<br /> ChivnelL R. The Life and Paintings of Vicat Cole. 63&#039;-<br /> Clapperton, J. A. Method of Soul-Culture. 1/6. Ret,<br /> Clark, H. L. Synapta Vivipara, 7/6 net.<br /> Clark, F. E (ed.) A Daily Message for Christian Endeavourera. 2/6.<br /> Bowden.<br /> Clegg, J- R- The Huah-a-By Papers. I/-<br /> Clough. Emma R. A Study of Mary Wollstonecraft and &lt;<br /> of Woman.&#039;* 7/d.<br /> Colvin. Sidney (ea). A Florentine Picture-Chronicle.<br /> Pictures by Maso Finiguerra.<br /> Conant, F. S. The Cuboraedusa;. 17/6 net.<br /> Connolly, J. The Experiences of a Local Secretary Twenty Years<br /> Ago. 1/6. Unwin,<br /> Cooper-King, C. The British Army and Auxiliary Forces. 807-<br /> 0 as sell.<br /> Cox, Emily. Courtship and Chemicals. 3/6. Ward and L.<br /> Coxon, Ethel. Within Bounds. 6/- Constable.<br /> Croker, E. J. O&#039;B. Retrospective Lessons on Railway Strikes. 2/6.<br /> Simpkin.<br /> Crosskey. L. R. Elementary Perspective. 3/6. Blackie.<br /> Cupp&#039;es, Mrs. George. Youug Bright Eye. 1/6. Gall.<br /> Cuihbertson, E. J. Tennyson. 1/- Chambers.<br /> Davidson. T. Rousseau, and Education according to Nature. 5/-<br /> Heinemann.<br /> Davis, Ellen L. Fencote&#039;s Fate. 1/6. Bel. Tract Soc.<br /> Davis, Richard Harding. The King&#039;s Jackal. 3/6. Heinemann.<br /> Dawe, Carlton. The Voyage of the &quot; Pulo Way.&quot; 3/6. Ward and L.<br /> Dearmer, P. Cathedral Church of Wells. 1/6. Bell.<br /> De Broglie, E. (tr. by M Partridge). Saint Vincent de Paul. 3/-<br /> Duck worth.<br /> De Coulevain, P. American Nobllity. 6/- L iw.<br /> Demidoff, E. Hunting Trips in the Caucasus. 21/- net. R. Ward.<br /> Demollns, E. Anglo-Saxon Supei iurity: To What is it Due? 3/6.<br /> Leadenhall Press.<br /> De Sali«. Mrs. The Housewife&#039;s Referee. 2/6. Hutchinson.<br /> Divani Shamsi Tabriz: Selected Poems. Ed. and tr. by R. A.<br /> Nicholson. 12/- Clay.<br /> Dole, N. H (ed.). Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Eng., Fr., Ger , It.,<br /> and Dan. Translations arranged in accordance with Fi&#039;z-<br /> Gerald&#039;s version. With further selections and other material.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Bowden.<br /> Digby.<br /> Nisbet.<br /> Nelson<br /> Jarrold.<br /> Clivc.<br /> Chambers.<br /> Cur wen.<br /> Greening.<br /> 5/-<br /> 24, - net.<br /> Dunbar, P. L. Folks from Dixie 3/<br /> Duncan, J. G. Trumps and Troubadours.<br /> Everard. G. Merry and Wise. 1 -<br /> Everett-Green, E. Tom Tufton&#039;s Toll. 3/6.<br /> Evershed. H Practical Sheep Farming. 1/-<br /> Feaienside. C. S. The Reign of Elizabeth, 1558-1603. 1/-<br /> Fenn. G. M. Nic Revel. 3/6.<br /> Fisher. Henry. The Pianist&#039;s Mentor. 2, 6.<br /> Fitz 4orald, S. J. A That Fascinating Widow, Ac. 1/<br /> Fitzm*urice-KHliy, J. A History of Spanish Literature. 6/-<br /> Heinemann.<br /> Foster. B. S. A Guide to the Law of Licensing. 10/- net. Waterlow.<br /> Fowler, T. History of Corpus Christi College, Oxford 5/- net.<br /> Robinson.<br /> Francis, M. E. The Duenna of a Genius. 6/- Harper.<br /> Froane, A. The Guitar. 1/- Bournemouth; Barnes and Mullina.<br /> 6 -<br /> Gale, J. S. Korean Sketche<br /> Gauht, Mary. Dead man&#039;s. An Australian Story.<br /> Gissing, George. The Town Traveller. A Novel. &lt;<br /> Glasgow. Ellen. Phases nf an Inferior Planet. 6/-<br /> Gordon. W. J. Midland Sketches. 1/6.<br /> Gould. Nat. Golden Buin. 2/6.<br /> Graham. Winifred. The Star Child. 6/-<br /> Grant. A. F. Chums at Last. 2&#039;6.<br /> Grave*, H- The Way about Berkshire. 1/-<br /> Graydon, N. A. Worker and Trader. A Survey.<br /> Grier, S. O. A Crowned Queen. 6/-<br /> Griffiths, A. Weliington and Waterloo. 10/6.<br /> Guallieur, H. The Paternal State In France and Germany.<br /> Harper.<br /> Guernsay, C. F. The Silver Rifle. 1/6. Gall.<br /> Hamilton, Bernard. The Light: a Romance. 6/- Hurst.<br /> Hardwicke, W. W. Sunday, the People&#039;s Holiday. 1/- Hill,<br /> Hare, F. E. The Cold Bath Treatment of Typhoid Fever. 6/- net.<br /> Oliphant.<br /> Methuen.<br /> /- Methuen,<br /> Heinemann.<br /> Rel. Tract Soc.<br /> Routledge.<br /> Huret.<br /> Nelson,<br /> Iliffe.<br /> 1/- Nutt.<br /> Blackwood.<br /> Newnes.<br /> Harris, Joel Chandler. Tales of the Home Folks 6/- Unwin*<br /> Harris, J. R. The Homeric Cent ines and the Acts of Pilate. 5/- Clay.<br /> Harris, Beader. The Case against Atheism. 1/- H. Marshall.<br /> Hart, ti.C. Flora of Countv Donegal. 7/6 net. Nutt.<br /> Henderson, G. F. R. Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil<br /> War. 42/- Longman.<br /> Henderson 11. The Young Eatiie Manager&#039;s Guide. 5/- Blackwood.<br /> Hives, E. L Versus and Kpigrams. Clay.<br /> Hocking, Silas K. The Culture of Manhood. I - H. Man-hall.<br /> Hocking, Silas K God&#039;s Outcast 3/6. Warne.<br /> Hoffmann, F. S. The Sphere of Science. 5&#039;- Putnam<br /> Holland Clive. The s.edof the Poppv. 6,- Pearson.<br /> Holme, L. R. 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322	https://historysoa.com/items/show/322	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 06 (November 1898)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+06+%28November+1898%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 06 (November 1898)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1898-11-01-The-Author-9-6					125–148																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1898-11-01">1898-11-01</a>							6			18981101	XL he H u t b o r,<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. 6.] NOVEMBER i, 1898. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by retnrn of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only.<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> joots whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOB some years it has been the praotioe to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices, &amp;o., for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to oarry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor I<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both rides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true : but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a oommon law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> seoretary before he signs it.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 126 (#138) ############################################<br /> <br /> i26 THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> i. LI VERY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> ITi advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advioe<br /> sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the oase of fraudnlent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the oountry.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that you may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of coarse, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Sooiety now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise npon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> communicate to the Editor any points oonnected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Offioe without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Seoretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, Ac.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his conduct, whether ho<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to-<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanced 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, reoently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> oorrect: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made npon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of course, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into hia own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of a welling their own profits call it<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Seoretary the modest<br /> 08. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> The Editor is always glad to receive short papers and<br /> communications on all subjects connected with literature<br /> from members and others. Nothing can do more good to<br /> the Society than to make The Author complete, attractive,<br /> and interesting. Will those who are willing to aid in this<br /> work send their names and the special subjects on which<br /> they are willing to write?<br /> THE AUTHORS&#039; CLUB.<br /> ri^HE Directors have the pleasure to inform<br /> I the members of the Authors&#039; Society that<br /> the new lease of the club premises has now<br /> been settled, and that the additional rooms will<br /> shortly be opened.<br /> One obstacle to the prosperous development of<br /> the club has been the comparatively limited<br /> accommodation offered to members, and com-<br /> plaints have been put forward from time to time<br /> that it was impossible, for that reason, for<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 127 (#139) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 127<br /> members to ask their friends to join. The new<br /> large coffee room will give increased facilities for<br /> dining, and the directors expect to see an<br /> accession of new members to the club. They<br /> feel assured, after the very cordial expression of<br /> goodwill at the last general meeting, that in<br /> taking over the new rooms they have adopted a<br /> course which will receive the hearty support of<br /> all the members, and which will be to the advan-<br /> tage of the club.<br /> G. Herbert Theing, Secretary.<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I. —A County Couet Decision.—Spicer v.<br /> Nutt.<br /> ON the 17th Oct., in the Westminster County<br /> Court, Judge Lumley Smith, Q.C., and a<br /> jury heard the case of Spicer v. Nutt, an<br /> action brought by an Oxford clergyman against<br /> a Strand publisher and bookseller, to recover<br /> .£41 is. Sd., profits on the sale of a book called<br /> &quot;The Baba Log.&quot;<br /> The defendant claimed £21 is. Sd. as a set-off,<br /> and paid £20 into court.<br /> The Rev. J. M. Macdonald, a missionary in<br /> India, wrote the book, a work for children in<br /> British India, and got the Rev. Mr. Spicer to<br /> have it published. The plaintiff agreed to pay<br /> Mr. Nutt. He did so for some editions, and<br /> guaranteed to pay for any further editions Mr.<br /> Macdonald ordered. Mr. Macdonald had a cor-<br /> respondence with Mr. Nutt as to publishing a<br /> cheaper edition for use in schools in India as a<br /> text-book, and ordered eventually 500 copies as a<br /> school edition. The plaintiff refused to pay the<br /> loss on that edition, £21 is. Sd., as he only, he<br /> said, guaranteed to pay for further editions of the<br /> book as he saw it—the higher priced edition.<br /> The defendant contended that the school edition<br /> was precisely the same except the binding, and was<br /> practically the same book.<br /> The jury found for the plaintiff for the amount<br /> claimed, and judgment was given accordingly with<br /> costs.—Daily Graphic.<br /> II. —Copyright in Holland and Germany.<br /> The following, which we quote from our con-<br /> temporary Das Jiecht der Feder, a German organ<br /> for the protection of copyright, is probably of<br /> greater interest to English authors than the<br /> majority of them suspect. Not everyone has<br /> noticed in how many Dutch newspapers the<br /> feuilleton is a translation of an English novel.<br /> The Netherlands Union for the Advancement<br /> of the Bookselling Trade has, at its general<br /> meeting, decided, by a majority of eighty-one to<br /> forty, to take no steps in favour of the adhesion<br /> of Holland to the Berne Union. Herr A. J.<br /> Robbeen, a partisan of adhesion to the Union,<br /> divides the opponents of that step into three<br /> classes:<br /> 1. A few small printer-publishers who procure<br /> translations of foreign novels, and print them to<br /> keep their presses going. The cost of production<br /> being inconsiderable, the smallest sales produce<br /> some profit.<br /> 2. Editors of newspapers who wish to procure<br /> feuilletons at starvation prices.<br /> 3. Theatrical speculators.<br /> On the contrary—so Herr Robbeen asserts—<br /> all Dutch authors, all the great publishers, and<br /> all the educated public are in favour of adhesion.<br /> This opinion of his is hardly supported by the<br /> fact that a number of Dutch statesmen and<br /> jurists have always declared themselves to be<br /> opponents of international copyright. Amongst<br /> these Dr. J. D. Veergens has, in his writings,<br /> expressed the following opinions:<br /> &quot;I consider the exploded doctrine of so-called<br /> intellectual property to be absolutely untenable.<br /> &quot;Translation is not piracy, but original work.<br /> &quot;An idea as soon as it is expressed is public<br /> property.<br /> &quot;Holland has not joined the Berne Union,<br /> first of all, because, in the interests of the<br /> community, the Government was indisposed<br /> to sacrifice the fundamental liberty of transla-<br /> tion.<br /> &quot;To this liberty Holland must hold fast.&quot;<br /> From these and some other principles of equity<br /> adduced by Dr. Veergens, Dr. Robbeen deduces<br /> the conclusion that, &quot;according to Veergens,<br /> copyright exists only in consequence of legal<br /> enactment. Were there no legislation on the<br /> subject there would be no right.&quot;<br /> Dr. J. A. Levy, a former deputy, seconds Dr.<br /> Veergens by saying: &quot;Thought is the highest<br /> expression of the intellectual faculty of man.<br /> Thought exists in order to be disseminated. Only<br /> dissemination can make it fruitful. In conse-<br /> quence, any hindrance of its dissemination is an<br /> unpardonable crime against the evolution of<br /> humanity. For this reason no one any longer<br /> speaks of literary property as a legal right. . .<br /> One respects the rights of authors. But transla-<br /> tion forms no part of an author&#039;s rights. . . .<br /> The translator works in his own sphere of thought,<br /> in his own world of imagination. Into that<br /> sphere the original author does not enter: the<br /> translator is absolute master. By what pretence,<br /> by what shadow of right, can the translator&#039;s<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 128 (#140) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> intellectual labour be denied the quality of origi-<br /> nality? No two translations are alike.&quot;<br /> Das Recht der Feder remarks on these charm-<br /> ing statements: &quot;That the liberty defended by<br /> these gentlemen is that of the highwayman has<br /> entirely escaped their observation. And are the<br /> highest nights of imagination those which they<br /> have been so desirous to reproduce? Certainly<br /> not. Only his own interests make the translator<br /> a thief. The foulest pamphlet that delights the<br /> herd is by far more precious to him than the most<br /> important intellectual work, which pleases only a<br /> few cultivated people. The former brings in, the<br /> latter costs, money. Culture that takes money<br /> out of his pocket? Not if he knows it! Multa-<br /> tuli was right. There is a robber State between<br /> East Friesland and the Scheldt. When will the<br /> Dutch open their eyes to the fact that the protec-<br /> tion of the rights of foreign authors is the best<br /> protection of national production?&quot;<br /> The German Union of Authors (&quot;Schrifts-<br /> teller Verband&quot;) on the occasion of the annual<br /> general meeting at Wiesbaden, in September,<br /> turned its attention to the proposed revision of<br /> the copyright law of the German Empire, and<br /> passed several important resolutions :—<br /> 1. That this meeting expresses its satisfaction<br /> at the prospect of a revision of the law.<br /> 2. That the meeting trusts that before the<br /> projected law is placed in the statute-book it<br /> may be submitted for public criticism.<br /> 3. That the union shall appoint a commission<br /> to determine (after making general inquiries<br /> ainongst authors) what are the particular points<br /> which should be taken into consideration by the<br /> new legislation, and to lay the results of its in-<br /> quiries before the Legislature.<br /> On the motion of Herr M. Hilde brand four<br /> general propositions respecting the lines which<br /> the new Legislature should take were also passed,<br /> the second and fourth not without opposition :—<br /> 1. The passing of a single enactment, replacing<br /> the imperial laws of June 11, 1870, and Jan. 9,<br /> 1876.<br /> 2. Protection of copyright irrespective of the<br /> nationality of the author or original locality of<br /> publication.<br /> 3. Reproduction of newspaper articles to be<br /> piracy—if for pecuniary advantage, or in order to<br /> avoid the expense of procuring independent<br /> &#039;information.<br /> 4. A tax—to be applied to benevolent insti-<br /> tutions for authors — to be imposed upon all<br /> works of which the copyright has lapsed.<br /> In defence of his second proposition, Herr<br /> Hildebrand pleaded that making a distinction<br /> between authors of different nationalities pro-<br /> duces in the mind of the public a confusion of<br /> ideas respecting the nature of literary property.<br /> In a civilised State, such as the German Empire,<br /> a man ought not to be robbed because he happens<br /> to be a Roumanian or a Greek.<br /> Translation of an Article Reprinted from<br /> &quot;Hannover schen Courier&quot; in &quot;Das Recht der<br /> Feder&quot; No. 143, October 2, 1898, p. 156.<br /> We may express the hope that it [the revision<br /> of the German Copyright Law] will not result in<br /> a mere recension intended to amend certain par-<br /> ticulars in which the law of 1870 has been left<br /> behind by subsequent international conventions,<br /> but that the Government may show itself disposed<br /> to favour more advanced wishes. For some time<br /> past a tendency that certainly deserves respect,<br /> has existed in the German literary world, or at<br /> least in that section of it which concerns itself<br /> about these copyright questions that so closely<br /> affect literary men—it is much to be regretted<br /> that more great names do not belong to that<br /> section of the literary world. On this subject a<br /> correspondent writes to us:<br /> &quot;Discerning authors have already availed them-<br /> selves of the opportunity of discussing the revision<br /> of the law at congresses. Our present copyright<br /> law protects only the German author from un-<br /> authorised reproduction. Foreign authors are<br /> protected only in so far as conventions exist with<br /> their respective States. Literary works produced<br /> in States with which we have no such conventions<br /> (for example Russia, Sweden, Denmark, Greece,<br /> Turkey, and many others) can be translated or<br /> reproduced amongst us without restrictions, and<br /> vice versd. The wishes of literary circles, so far<br /> as these have been expressed, now go so far as to<br /> desire that the new law should protect all intel-<br /> lectual productions from translation, reproduction,<br /> dramatisation, performance, &amp;c., irrespective of<br /> the country in which the author lives. This pro-<br /> posal at first sight appears to result from taking<br /> a purely idealistic point of view. The Russian<br /> author will be protected in Germany, and the<br /> German author will be absolutely unprotected in<br /> Russia. Nevertheless, solid realities lie at the base<br /> of the proposal. When we protect the foreign<br /> author from being taken advantage of, we compel<br /> the German publisher who desires to bring out a<br /> foreign work to come to terms with the author.<br /> The publisher will have to pay the author and<br /> the translator, and, in consequence, the foreign<br /> work will be made more expensive; for example,<br /> the foreign novel, which at present plays so im-<br /> portant a rile in our newspapers and elsewhere.<br /> Under these circumstances only those foreign<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 129 (#141) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> works will be translated upon which it is worth<br /> while to spend some money. The German author<br /> will be liberated from the base competition of bad<br /> translations of foreign mediocre works which are<br /> practically mere poor imitations either of our own<br /> or of French literature; and German intellectual<br /> labour will consequently increase in both material<br /> and ideal value, seeing that the German author,<br /> liberated from the meanest competition, will be<br /> able to emancipate himself from anenervating over-<br /> production. The proof of the correctness of this<br /> view is at hand. France has had a law of this<br /> sort—ein solches Gesetz, but this statement seems<br /> to require qualification—since 1852, and French<br /> literature and French authors stand in the highest<br /> estimation. Supposing that a few journalistic<br /> pirates, in Russia or Holland or elsewhere, wrest<br /> foreign literary productions to their own advan-<br /> tage, they do so at the cost of the development of<br /> their own literature, which cannot but be a gain<br /> to us. It is to be anticipated also that this view<br /> may be taken by the representatives of our<br /> Government; for example. Privy Councillor<br /> Reichard, of the Foreign Office—I am unable to<br /> find the name of Reichard in the books of<br /> reference at my disposal—on one occasion re-<br /> marked at a conference on international negotia-<br /> tions, &#039;Only the nation which has a strong copy-<br /> right law can possess a literature.&#039;&quot;<br /> The opinions here expressed certainly contain<br /> much that is to the point. On the other hand, it<br /> is not possible at once to set aside the considera-<br /> tion that by this one-sided protection of literary<br /> work we may be surrendering a weapon that might<br /> compel foreign States to abstain from pirating<br /> German literature.<br /> Revision of the German Copyright Law.<br /> Herr Hildebrand, president of the Deutscher<br /> Schriftsteller Genossenschaft, in his excellent<br /> journal, Das Recht der Feder, is making strong<br /> protests against the constitution of the commis-<br /> sion of experts entrusted with the preliminary<br /> consultations respecting the very important pro-<br /> ject of the revision of the German imperial<br /> copyright law. &quot;Nine publishers, but not a<br /> single literary celebrity!&quot; he exclaims, and not<br /> without reason. Associated with the names of<br /> imperial officials and legal authorities we find<br /> those of Brockhaus, Mulbrecht, and Voigtlander,<br /> of the musical booksellers Birkmeyer, Bock,<br /> Strecher, also of Engelhorn (President of the<br /> German booksellers&#039; Borsenverein) and of Von<br /> Hase (President of the Musical Booksellers&#039;<br /> Society). But literature is represented by Herr<br /> Hildebrand himself alone, whilst, to quote his own<br /> words, &quot; the name of no single author of celebrity<br /> vol.. rx.<br /> appears on the list.&quot; He adds modestly: &quot;That<br /> the honourable enterprise of defending the rights<br /> of authors against the interests of publishers<br /> should have been left to me alone, appears to me<br /> by n&#039;o means a satisfactory arrangement.&quot; Mean-<br /> while the protests of some of the trade journals<br /> against his large-minded views of copyright draw<br /> from him the strong remark &quot; that certain pub-<br /> lishers should be alarmed at the prospect of being<br /> compelled to earn their bread honestly, and of<br /> being prevented from stealing, is quite compre-<br /> hensible.&quot; And in conclusion he adds: &quot;What<br /> the interests of authors are must be learned from<br /> authors, not from their publishers,&quot; in which we<br /> entirely agree with him<br /> III.—The Pall Mall on Mr. Victor Spiees.<br /> &quot;There is a long letter in The Author this month<br /> from Mr. Victor Spiers which raises an interesting<br /> point in the relation between the publisher and the<br /> writer of books. . . . Mr. Spiers has taken<br /> to issuing his books through a distributing agent,<br /> as, it appears, Miss Braddon does also, and his<br /> reason for recommending that method is practi-<br /> cally this: that you should not trust any man in<br /> the dark. Suppose one publishes a book on the<br /> royalty system; the publisher after a due period<br /> says that so many copies have been sold and pays<br /> accordingly. But, says Mr. Spiers, how do you<br /> know how many copies have been sold? You<br /> rely on the publisher&#039;s bare word, and that is<br /> not businesslike. Mr. Spiers proposes as an<br /> amendment to this practice that the printer<br /> should take his orders from the publisher and the<br /> author jointly, and should render his account to<br /> both. But every publishing house would refuse<br /> to accept such a clause in an agreement, and<br /> would regard the proposal as a slur upon its<br /> integrity. That is, of course, the case; and I think<br /> that there is a good deal to be said against the<br /> attitude adopted by publishers in this matter.<br /> For, even if it be granted that nine publishers out<br /> of ten are to be trusted implicitly, there is always<br /> the tenth man to consider. If A., B., C, and D.,<br /> whom I can trust blindfolded, do not want to<br /> publish my book, how can I go to E. and say:<br /> &#039;The arrangement which I should be willing to<br /> accept with A., B., C, or D., implies more confi-<br /> dence in the publisher than I should be willing<br /> to extend to you&#039;? Thus the action of the<br /> trustworthy houses throws temptation in the way<br /> of those who are less honest. And it must be<br /> remembered that publishers have no control over<br /> members of their trade. A solicitor who has<br /> defrauded his client may be struck off the rolls,<br /> but a publisher cannot be. What Mr. Sp<br /> calls &#039; the large, old and respected houses&#039; would<br /> P<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 130 (#142) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> have probably everything to gain by accepting<br /> &#039;a legal examination of accounts.&#039; Once the<br /> point was conceded in theory not one author in<br /> twenty would care to pay the expenses of such an<br /> inquiry.&quot;—Pall Mall Gazette, Oct. 8.<br /> Mr. Victor Spiers has sent a second letter to<br /> the Pall Mall Gazette. It contains a statement<br /> of the greatest interest:<br /> In my first letter I suggested a simpler alternative than<br /> a legal audit of accounts : it was merely that into the agree-<br /> ment should be inserted a clause to the effect that the<br /> printer should print only upon receipt of an order bearing<br /> the joint signature of author and publisher. Some of your<br /> many readers may be interested to hear that a large Paris<br /> house actually gives these very terms in its contracts; at<br /> any rate, I have just heard that they have been given to<br /> one author, who moreover has the stereos under his oontrol,<br /> and actually has in his possession a few plates of one of<br /> bis books. Nor is it likely that he is the only one thus<br /> privileged. The general adoption of this clause would do<br /> away with the unpleasant feeling that undoubtedly exists in<br /> the minds of most authors, and that, undoubtedly again,<br /> should not be permitted to exist in the relations between<br /> honourable men.<br /> Suspicion ought not to exist in the relations<br /> between honourable men. That is true. It is<br /> impossible to exist between honourable men.<br /> But when we have two sides, one of whom, like<br /> Mr. Spiers, demands nothing but honesty and the<br /> ordinary proofs of honesty, and the other side<br /> absolutely refuses these proofs, on which side<br /> does honour lie? Let us remember that in the<br /> famous &quot; draft agreements&#039;&#039; there is not one word of<br /> concession. Why, even the charge for advertise-<br /> ments not paid for is left without a word of<br /> remonstrance! .<br /> IV.—A Question of Eight.<br /> In the number of the Publishers&#039; Circular<br /> dated Oct. 8 a letter appeared, signed &quot;A<br /> Publisher.&quot; The writer begins with the usual<br /> petty spitefulness about this Society. It appears<br /> that we are not &quot;representative.&quot; He then pro-<br /> ceeds to state certain considerations, especially<br /> that when cases are submitted to the Publishers&#039;<br /> Association or the Authors&#039; Society, neither of<br /> these bodies is pledged to secrecy. &quot;Has either<br /> publisher or author the right of referring a dis-<br /> pute, including communication of all documents<br /> bearing upon it, to the Publishers&#039; Association or<br /> to the Society of Authors without first obtaining<br /> the consent of the other party; and, if he does so,<br /> will an action for damages lie?&quot;<br /> His question in effect is: &quot;Has an author or a<br /> publisher the legal right of making public to his<br /> association the terms of any dispute and the com-<br /> munication of all documents bearing upon it?&quot;<br /> I write from the author&#039;s point of view.<br /> An author has a certain property. He employs<br /> an agent to administer that property on certain<br /> terms. He subsequently has a dispute with that<br /> agent. J£ he thinks it desirable he can refer the<br /> dispute, with all papers concerning it, to any<br /> person. In the case of referring it to the<br /> Authors&#039; Society he refers it to them as an Asso-<br /> ciation which can be of valuable assistance in<br /> defending him and his property. The same<br /> remark would apply where the author sells the<br /> copyright or his property outright to the pub-<br /> lisher. Apart from this broad principle, how-<br /> ever, an author refers to the Secretary of the<br /> Society in the first instance as to a solicitor, and<br /> receives advice from the Secretary as from a<br /> solicitor, the Secretary holding all such communi-<br /> cations in confidence. If, subsequently, owing to<br /> the dispute not being satisfactorily settled, the<br /> author desires the matter referred to the Com-<br /> mittee, it is still treated in confidence as far as<br /> the Committee are concerned. The author, how-<br /> ever, has the right of putting his statement of<br /> facts before anyone he may choose, whether the<br /> Secretary of the Society, the Committee, or the<br /> public.<br /> The writer states as follows: &quot;It is obvious<br /> that neither body can be regarded naturally as an<br /> arbitration tribunal.&quot; Such a remark is wholly<br /> unnecessary, though in some cases, with the con-<br /> sent of both parties, it might be advantageous to<br /> accept the Authors&#039; Society or their authorised<br /> representative as an arbitrator. In three cases<br /> that came before the Secretary last year when<br /> matters were in dispute between author and pub-<br /> lisher, and the issue was one that could be best<br /> settled by arbitration, the publisher accepted the<br /> settlement of the case on the basis proposed by<br /> the Secretary and the Society&#039;s solicitors. That<br /> such should be the case speaks very favourably<br /> for the Society&#039;s fairness in cases of dispute and<br /> to a recognition of the fact that while the Society<br /> exists for its members it does not entertain any<br /> desire to injure other people. The main gist of<br /> the question, however, appears to be that the<br /> &quot;Publisher,&quot; whoever he may be, strongly<br /> objects to have his own practices or those of his<br /> brothers in trade made public. Q-. H. T.<br /> V.—CONTKIBUTIONS TO MAGAZINES.<br /> (From the Law Journal, by permission.)<br /> Section 18 of the Copyright Act of 1842<br /> (5 &amp; 6 Vict. c. 45) provides that, when the<br /> proprietor or conductor of an encyclopaedia,<br /> magazine, review, or periodical or serial work,<br /> employs persons to compose articles, essays,<br /> poems, or any portion of such works, the copy-<br /> right of the articles, essays, &amp;c., shall vest in such<br /> proprietor or conductor, provided that the articles<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 131 (#143) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> »3i<br /> were composed &quot; on the terms that the copyright<br /> shall belong to such proprietor,&quot; &amp;c., and have<br /> actually been paid for, and subject to a right on<br /> the part of the composer to publish his composi-<br /> tions in a separate form at the expiration of<br /> twenty-eight years from the date of their first<br /> appearance in the encyclopaedia, magazine, or<br /> other work. Tor some years after the passing of<br /> the Act it was a disputed question what was the<br /> precise meaning of the words &quot;on the terms that<br /> the copyright shall belong to such proprietor,&quot;<br /> &lt;fec. Was it sufficient to show that there had<br /> actually been payment for an article in order to<br /> vest the copyright in it in the proprietor of the<br /> magazine in which it appeared? Must there<br /> have been an express agreement that the copy-<br /> right should pass from the author to the pro-<br /> prietor, or could a transfer be implied from<br /> circumstances? In Sweet v. Benning (24 Law<br /> J. Eep. C. P. 175; 16 C. B. 459) the Court of<br /> Common Pleas held that the transfer of copyright<br /> to the magazine proprietor might take place by<br /> implication, as well as by express agreement.<br /> &quot;Where,&quot; said Chief Justice Jervis (24 Law J.<br /> Eep. C. P. 179; 16 C. B. 480), &quot;the proprietor<br /> of a periodical employs a gentleman to write a<br /> given article or a series of articles or reports,<br /> expressly for the purpose of publication therein,<br /> of necessity it is implied that the copyright of<br /> the articles so expressly written for such periodical<br /> and paid for by the proprietors and publishers<br /> thereof, shall be the property of such proprietors<br /> and publishers; otherwise, it might be that the<br /> author might, the day after his article has been<br /> published by the persons for whom he contracted to<br /> write it, republish it in a separate form, or in<br /> another serial, and there would be no corres-<br /> pondent benefit to the original publishers for<br /> the payment they had made.&quot; But the impli-<br /> cation does not arise from the mere fact that<br /> payment has been made for the article ( Walter<br /> v. Howe, 50 Law J. Rep. Chanc. 621; L. R.<br /> 17 Chanc. Div.). The copyright was in the first<br /> instance in the author, and it remains in him<br /> except in so far as he can be shown to have<br /> parted with it {Hereford v. Griffin, 17 Law J.<br /> Rep. Chanc. 210; 16 Sim. 190; Smith v. John-<br /> son, 33 Law J. Rep. Chanc. 137; 4 Giff. 632).<br /> Under the existing law, therefore, the offer of<br /> an article to the proprietors of a periodical will<br /> not carry copyright even upon payment, if the<br /> article has not actually been written in pursu-<br /> ance of a previous arrangement, express or<br /> implied. The section, in fact, is only applicable<br /> when the author, before commencing to write,<br /> has entered into an agreement with the maga-<br /> zine proprietor in express terms, or in terms<br /> which may be implied to have existed through<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> the subsequent action, relations, or behaviour of<br /> the parties.<br /> The two bills recently before Parliament, intro-<br /> duced by Lords Herschell and Monkswell, made<br /> the following proposals as to this class of litera-<br /> ture. Unlike the Act of 1842, which treated<br /> encyclopaedias and magazines in precisely the same<br /> way, the present bills divide them into two classes<br /> consisting of (1) encyclopaedias, dictionaries, and<br /> similar collective works; (2) magazines, reviews,<br /> and other periodicals.<br /> In the first class the copyright in contributions<br /> will belong to the owner of the compilation dur-<br /> ing the entire period for which copyright will<br /> exist, and he or his assigns will be the only<br /> persons entitled to take action in case of an<br /> infringement. If the author wishes to reserve<br /> copyright to himself, he must enter into a special<br /> written agreement to that effect. It is obvious<br /> that this is a more favourable arrangement for<br /> proprietors of collective works than exists in the<br /> present state of the law, when at the latest, con-<br /> tributors to such works are entitled to republish<br /> their contributions in separate form at the end of<br /> twenty years.<br /> In the second class the copyright in contribu-<br /> tions will remain in the authors; but, provided<br /> that payment has been made by the owner of the<br /> magazine, &amp;c., to which they are contributed, the<br /> authors will not be at liberty to republish their<br /> contributions in a separate form until the expira-<br /> tion of three years from the date when they first<br /> appeared (or three years from the end of the<br /> year in which they first appeared, as Lord<br /> Herschell&#039;s Bill proposes). Authors are, how-<br /> ever, at liberty to register their contributions at<br /> Stationers&#039; Hall as separate publications imme-<br /> diately on their appearance, and can then claim<br /> damages for infringement of copyright although<br /> the three years have not elapsed. As under the<br /> existing law, the magazine proprieters will have<br /> the sole right of publication in their magazines<br /> (but not otherwise) during the entire subsistence<br /> of the copyright. Here, again, the proprietors<br /> will be somewhat more favourably placed than at<br /> present, because they will be legally entitled to<br /> prevent separate publication on the author&#039;s part<br /> for the specified period of three years, whereas<br /> the only check that at present exists upon<br /> separate publication by an author on the day<br /> after his article has appeared in a magazine is, in<br /> the absence of a special stipulation, the im-<br /> probability that he would see his signature at the<br /> foot of any further contributions in the same<br /> magazine. With most contributors this would,<br /> no doubt, be a sufficiently powerful incentive to<br /> refrain from any unfair dealing, but the new<br /> proposal places the rights of the various parties<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 132 (#144) ############################################<br /> <br /> 132<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> on a clearer and more settled basis than at<br /> present, and is therefore desirable from every<br /> point of view.<br /> Under existing conditions it is not an unusual<br /> course among authors, when submitting their<br /> contributions for an editor&#039;s approval, to notify<br /> their desire to reserve the copyright. As the law<br /> stands, this would appear to be a work of supere-<br /> rogation, but what will be necessary when the<br /> provisions of these bills become law will be a<br /> notification that the contributor desires to reserve<br /> the right of republication before the statutory<br /> three years, if such is the case. Probably, how-<br /> ever, the majority of contributors will not object<br /> to the practical relinquishment of their copyright<br /> for a period which does not seem to be unreason-<br /> ably long to duly safeguard the interests of the<br /> owners of periodicals.<br /> VI.—The Question of Overs.<br /> This point has been raised before. It was<br /> brought before the notice of the Secretary for the<br /> first time by receiving a publisher&#039;s account, in<br /> which the author was credited with the &quot; overs.&quot;<br /> In three editions of a thousand each they made a<br /> considerable difference in the sum due to him.<br /> Now it must be remarked that this is the only<br /> account ever received at the office in which the<br /> &quot;overs &quot; were so much as mentioned. If a pub-<br /> lisher is asked about them, he says that they are<br /> not worth mentioning, or that there are no<br /> &quot;overs,&quot; or that the &quot;overs&quot; were used up to<br /> complete imperfect copies. He might, however,<br /> just as well say that two or three copies, or two or<br /> three dozen copies, are not worth mentioning.<br /> Now, a certain authority states that publishers<br /> expect from 5 to 10 per cent. of &quot; overs.&quot; This<br /> seems to mean that, on an edition of 1000, there<br /> are fifty to 100 &quot;overs,&quot; which seems too many.<br /> On this subject some exact information is greatly<br /> to be desired. If &quot;overs&quot; mean anything like<br /> fifty in a thousand, then a monstrous system of<br /> fraud has been practised, so far with absolute<br /> impunity.<br /> THE INTERNATIONAL PRESS CONGRESS<br /> AT LISBON.<br /> THREE years have elapsed since I had the<br /> pleasure of writing upon the International<br /> Press Congress in The Author. In Nov.,<br /> 1895,1 described the work done at Bordeaux,<br /> where a goodly gathering of English were present;<br /> but since then, owing to the action of the<br /> Institute of Journalists, the English have taken<br /> no part in this international work for the better-<br /> ing of journalists. But this year, thanks to the<br /> establishment of the &quot;British International<br /> Association of Journalists,&quot; with Miss G. B.<br /> Stuart as the energetic secretary, and Mr. P. W.<br /> Clayden as president, again English journalists<br /> have had a voice at this important congress.<br /> The meeting at Lisbon promised to be an<br /> important and interesting one, and those of us<br /> who were in Holland for the Queen&#039;s enthrone-<br /> ment felt, perhaps, more than others the care of<br /> the combined Dutch and Congress committees,<br /> for we were pleasantly sent direct, on a well-found<br /> Dutch East Indiaman, to Lisbon, where we were<br /> received in state by the ex-Minister of Marine of<br /> Portugal.<br /> In this fascinating capital we met 396<br /> journalists of eighteen nationalities, the French<br /> predominating in numbers, and we soon found<br /> the local committee had indeed done everything<br /> for the &quot;congressites.&quot; The blue &quot;Carnet&quot;<br /> with the &quot;Ordre du Jour,&quot; &quot;Emploi du<br /> Temps &quot; we quickly found was a passe-partout in<br /> Lisbon.<br /> The solemn inauguration on Monday, the 26th<br /> Sept., was a short but important ceremony,<br /> H.M. the King of Portugal presiding, with the<br /> Queen and Dom Alphonso Infanta on either hand,<br /> the members of the Corps Diplomatique and the<br /> Municipality of Lisbon ranging round their<br /> Majesties.<br /> The Great Hall of the Geographical Society<br /> (the whole building being given over as a<br /> club to the congressites) was filled with a<br /> brilliant gathering of Portuguese, and when<br /> M. Singer, the president of the Congress, rose<br /> to give his opening address, the scene was im-<br /> pressive.<br /> The King replied in a happy impromtu,<br /> referring to the fact that he had just presided at a<br /> medical congress,a gathering of those who cared for<br /> the body, whilst before him were those who cared<br /> for and healed the mind. The cheers at the end<br /> of the King&#039;s speech in every European tongue<br /> were very cordial.<br /> The English secured seats in the front at the<br /> gangway, and near them were the Dutch, Scandi-<br /> navian, and Polish contingents; the Germans<br /> this year numbered thirty, Professor Koch, of<br /> Heidelberg, presiding on the third day.<br /> International Telegraphic Tariffs.<br /> On Tuesday, at the first session, Mr. P. W.<br /> Clayden was elected to the Central Bureau as<br /> the English representative, and took his seat<br /> on the platform after the reading of the secre-<br /> tary&#039;s and treasurer&#039;s reports. The very im-<br /> portant matter of international telegraphic tariffs<br /> was brought forward by M. de Beraza, of Spain.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 133 (#145) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> i33<br /> For four years the Central Bureau, with M.<br /> Beraza, has been working for a reduction iu the<br /> tariff for international Press telegrams, and have<br /> succeeded so far, that a convention has been<br /> signed between France and Spain, and an arrange-<br /> ment has been entered into between France and<br /> Luxembourg. Other countries have been loth to<br /> take the matter up. England was disposed to<br /> accept an arrangement, and asked for further<br /> information, and later on was inclined to agree<br /> to a reduced tax during the night. A brisk<br /> discussion arose on this report, the speakers<br /> being Dr. Israel and M. Elont, of Holland;<br /> M. Constant, of France; and S. Beraza, of<br /> Spain; the writer hereof causing some amuse-<br /> ment by pointing out that the telegraphic Press<br /> rate to England was only 400 reis for 100<br /> words, at the same time urging that the English<br /> suggestion of a reduction during the night be<br /> accepted as a step in advance. Finally it was<br /> agreed that the committee of direction should<br /> carry on their negotiations with the various<br /> countries.<br /> A little diversion was caused during this debate<br /> by an English member demanding that, as in<br /> all international congresses, the question to be<br /> voted upon, and any amendments, or rdsumd<br /> of any important speech, should be given in<br /> English and German, if spoken in French. The<br /> President (M. Singer) added his weight to this<br /> suggestion, and it was agreed to, but only in one<br /> or two cases acted upon.<br /> The subject of an International Bureau for<br /> Journalists was then brought forward by M.<br /> Torelli-Viollier and M. Janzon. This bureau is<br /> already at work, 431 journalists being inscribed<br /> upon its roll; so that any editor can know at<br /> once whom to apply to all over Europe for news,<br /> upon any important event happening where he<br /> has no correspondent.<br /> . This ended the work of the first session, and in<br /> the afternoon the &quot;congressites&quot; betook them-<br /> selves by special train to that paradise Southey<br /> has rapturously described—Cintra. The Moorish<br /> palace of the King on its rocky height, with the<br /> vast, glorious views of piled volcanic crag,<br /> vintaged plain, and olive and palmed-clothed<br /> vales, were long lingered over; but an al fresco<br /> lunch in the grounds below, and some of the<br /> vintage of the district, transformed sedate profes-<br /> sors and aged journalists into jovial schoolboys<br /> decorated with palms, and feathers, and flowers,<br /> trophies of the feast. In the cool of the evening<br /> the wondrously beautiful tropical gardens and<br /> park of Monserrat were visited; and the drive<br /> back beneath the soft light of the full moon,<br /> beneath the arching trees, was a most delightful<br /> experience.<br /> The Reproduction op Articles.<br /> At 9.30 on the next morning, with a full house,<br /> the stormy question of the &quot;Right of Reproduc-<br /> tion of Political Articles &quot; was introduced by M.<br /> Albert Bataille. At Stockholm, in 1897, the<br /> copyright of telegrams had been sustained, but,<br /> in the interest of a free propaganda of ideas, this<br /> question had been reserved for the Lisbon<br /> Congress. M. Bataille&#039;s report was well worked<br /> out, and gave rise to a most animated discussion.<br /> Personally, I was much interested in this debate,<br /> for on Jan. 15, 1891, at a meeting of the<br /> Society of Authors, Sir F. Pollock in the chair,<br /> I brought up the question of &quot; Copyright in Lite-<br /> rary Style in News Notes &quot;; and in the Law<br /> Journal of Jan. 24 Mr. J. M. Lely wrote a leader-<br /> ette upon the subject. Here, from the report,<br /> the thing I had spoken for seven years ago was<br /> within measurable distance of becoming inter-<br /> national law. M. Bataille urged that no article<br /> should be printed without the consent of the author<br /> or the journal, but this was combated strongly<br /> by MM. Waalwijk and Elont, of Holland; and<br /> a brilliant passage of arms occurred between M.<br /> Constant and M. Bataille. I ventured to claim<br /> copyright, not only for political and other articles,<br /> but also for &quot; notes,&quot; as so much journalism now<br /> consists of &quot;notes.&quot; Finally, after a warm dis-<br /> cussion that never descended into chaos, as did<br /> the discussion on this knotty question in Bor-<br /> deaux, it was unanimously voted: &quot;That, as far<br /> as concerns the reproduction of articles, treating<br /> of political, religious, economical, and social sub-<br /> jects, the right of citation is recognised in the<br /> superior interest of free discussion; but, in all<br /> cases, the journal reproducing must quote the<br /> name of the author and the journal from which<br /> the article is taken.&quot; Mr. Warden, the secretary<br /> to the English section, pointed out that few<br /> English articles were signed, but the word<br /> &quot;author&quot; was introduced into the motion, as, of<br /> course, foreign articles are so usually signed.<br /> The whole matter will now be prepared for the<br /> Diplomatic Conference at Berlin, in 1901—that is,<br /> preparatory to the completion of the Berne Con-<br /> vention; and it is hoped that all literary news-<br /> paper work, including &quot;notes&quot;—that I was<br /> assured by the &quot;rapporteurs&quot; upon this matter<br /> should not be overlooked—will become inter-<br /> nationally copyright. There is already a clause<br /> in Lord Monkswell&#039;s Bill partially to effect this in<br /> England.<br /> This was the most exciting debate of the<br /> Congress, and it showed how the members had<br /> advanced in self-control since the Bordeaux<br /> meeting. Yet, as M. Bataille remarked to me<br /> at the banquet in the Opera House, &quot;we must<br /> go on improving.&quot; A sense of satisfaction was<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 134 (#146) ############################################<br /> <br /> 134<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> very widely expressed that an English contin-<br /> gent was again present, and hopes uttered that<br /> next year our numbers would be greater.<br /> At the third session, the subject of profes-<br /> sional education for journalists was brought up<br /> by M. Bataille. Dr. Koch, of Heidelberg,<br /> explained his course of lectures on journalism;<br /> and a report was received that a school for<br /> journalists was to be opened in the Figaro office.<br /> On the question of an international tribunal of<br /> arbitration, it was decided the Central Bureau<br /> should be this tribunal; and it was also left to<br /> the Bureau to take up the matter of cards of<br /> identity to act as passports for journalists.<br /> Altogether, in spite of a somewhat weak agenda,<br /> good work was done, and many an international<br /> friendship made that ought to work for good,<br /> individually and collectively.<br /> A Social Success.<br /> Socially the Congress was an immense suc-<br /> cess. The King and Queen held a special<br /> reception at the Ajuda Palace on their joint<br /> birthdays, that fell on Sept. 28, a brilliant<br /> function that was succeeded by the birthday<br /> levie in the Throne-room, at which I also had the<br /> pleasure of being present. The gracious affa-<br /> bility of the Queen and her majestic beauty<br /> completely won the hearts of all the &quot;con-<br /> gressites&quot;; and the Lisbon committee sought<br /> every possible means to give pleasure to the<br /> journalists. An excursion to the historic Thomar<br /> and to Cascaes, with banquets and luncheons and<br /> illuminations, and an exceptionally brilliant bull-<br /> fight of the Portuguese type, that has none of<br /> the brutal cruelty to the horses, gave the members<br /> a good insight into Portuguese life. The send-<br /> off to Oporto with luncheon en route at Pampil-<br /> hosa, was a most hearty and enjoyable ending to<br /> the Lisbon festivities, Oporto taking up the warm<br /> hospitality in a most cordial and even bewilder-<br /> ing fashion. Few who were there will forget the<br /> rare charm and beauty of Lisbon, and the rich<br /> nature and wild scenery of Portugal. After<br /> the President, Councillor A. Ennes, the English<br /> were especially indebted to Dr. M. Lima and<br /> Sefiors Mendonca de Costa and Tavares, and, as<br /> usual, the whole of the &quot; congressites &quot; owe much<br /> to the indefatigable and courteous secretary, M.<br /> Victor Taunays. The next Congress will be held<br /> at Borne in 1899, Paris asserting its claim for<br /> 1900. James Baker.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> THE Secretary has been instructed to ask the<br /> Committee of the Publishers&#039; Association<br /> if they desire to reply to the strictures on<br /> their Draft Agreements contained in the July<br /> number of The Author. In reply they have-<br /> expressed a desire to confer on the Draft Agree-<br /> ments. The Committee of the Authors&#039; Society<br /> have refused to hold any conference on these<br /> documents.<br /> The Daily Chronicle (Oct. 18), in an article<br /> naturally called for by the De Rougemont expo-<br /> sure, spoke strongly of the gradual degenera-<br /> tion of periodical literature. &quot;The spread,&quot;<br /> it said, &quot;of a certain education, the constant<br /> cheapening of production, and the rapid expan-<br /> sion of the means of distribution to all the<br /> world, have substituted for a small and cultured<br /> public an immense audience whom no man can<br /> number, but who ask only to be amused. . . .<br /> With this movement there is combined another<br /> to the full as parlous, unless some better influences<br /> can overrule it. That is the astounding expansion<br /> of advertisements. The moment a cheap sheet of<br /> any sort can achieve a circulation counted in<br /> five or six figures, advertisers compete for the<br /> spare pages and its covers. For the word &quot; sub-<br /> stituted &quot; in the above, I would read &quot;added.&quot;&#039;<br /> The second part of this complaint seems inevit-<br /> able. As soon as a sheet arrives at an immense<br /> circulation, it naturally attracts advertisers, who-<br /> will pay largely for the use of the spare pages.<br /> This is an inconvenience that we shall nave to put<br /> up with. As regards the first part it is most true<br /> and most lamentable that there are millions of<br /> people who only read for sensation—to laugh, or to-<br /> shudder, or to while away the time. But, again,<br /> what does this mean? It means, I believe, a certain<br /> stage of intellectual development: all these multi-<br /> tudes have arrived at those lower levels of mental<br /> activity when the brain likes to be occupied but<br /> has not yet arrived at the power of continuous<br /> attention. It must be fed with comic scraps, with<br /> little bits of useless information, with short<br /> stories. It is a stage through which the better<br /> sort quickly pass, but it is always receiving new<br /> comers. We ought not to deride this condition,<br /> of mind any more than we deride children who run<br /> about shouting. i3-r,<br /> There is, however, one person who is respon-<br /> sible for the growing degradation. It is the<br /> editor of those sheets which appeal to the popular<br /> taste and make no attempt at leading or improv-<br /> ing it. The ideal editor is the man who under-<br /> stands how to guide and lead while lie. seems to.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 135 (#147) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> i35<br /> follow. The mischievous editor is the man who<br /> picks out what is worst and lowest in his readers<br /> and panders to that taste. There are at this<br /> moment half a dozen journals which between<br /> them have a circulation of millions. What will<br /> the editors do with these papers? Will they<br /> endeavour to impart to their readers, little by<br /> little, literary taste and literary culture? They<br /> can do it: the thing is possible: but the public<br /> will not by itself &quot; create,&quot; as the Daily Chronicle<br /> asks, &quot;an opinion in favour of work that will<br /> keep sweet the wells of their delight in the great<br /> Art of Letters.&quot; , ,<br /> One more point from this article—it is not<br /> often that one finds so much to say on a leader.<br /> The writer says,&quot; Time was when the magazine was<br /> an instalment of current literary work, addressed<br /> by writers who were able and entitled to write to<br /> a public which was able to criticise.&quot; Yes, but<br /> that public has not disappeared: it remains as<br /> strong and as large as ever. Its old magazines<br /> are not swamped by those which circulate by<br /> the million: they still flourish and lead and<br /> teach. The Nineteenth Century: the Contempo-<br /> rary: the Fortnightly: the National: the<br /> Quarterly: the Edinburgh: the Athenseum: the<br /> Academy: Literature; none of these organs<br /> address the uncultivated class: none of these are<br /> bought to while away an hour: and they have<br /> not, I believe, gone down in circulation while<br /> they have kept their old character. The surging<br /> millions around us cannot influence these papers<br /> nor can they influence their readers. What they<br /> have always done, they still continue to do.<br /> There is no hope that they will circulate among<br /> this multitude of imperfect mental development.<br /> In a word, the higher magazine is not sinking<br /> down: there is no sign of decay or deterioration<br /> in its tone or in its style. It remains to be seen<br /> whether the lower kind of magazine is capable of<br /> rising.<br /> LITEBARY PUPIL required by Editor of well-known<br /> London Magazine, resident in fashionable seaside<br /> town; young Lady or Gentleman with literary tastes<br /> preferred; a year&#039;s apprenticeship ; premium 100 guineas;<br /> salary jgi a week; good referenoes essential.—Address, in<br /> first instance,<br /> It is not surprising that one who undertakes to<br /> teach the art of writing, which is useful for the<br /> production of literature, should express a prefer-<br /> ence for a pupil with literary tastes. Is it<br /> possible, however, to open the door of the literary<br /> life by any teaching? Here, as in other questions<br /> of the kind that come before us, we must distin-<br /> guish. It is no more possible to turn any casual<br /> person into a man or woman of letters than it is<br /> to make him understand, against his powers of<br /> mind, the Integral Calculus. Given, however, the<br /> natural aptitude, then a certain amount of judi-<br /> cious instruction might possibly save many disap-<br /> pointments, and put a young man in the right<br /> way. What is offered in this advertisement is too<br /> vague for any practical purpose. The advertiser<br /> has certainly not taken lessons in the art of<br /> writing advertisements, which is a distinct branch<br /> of the literary profession. First, the young<br /> person is to pay ,£105 down. That is a serious<br /> haul. Next, he is to receive a pound a week. To<br /> begin with? To last how long? In return for<br /> what duties? Is he to board with the advertiser?<br /> If not, is he to reside in the same fashionable sea-<br /> side town? What is to be the curriculum<br /> of study? What are the advertiser&#039;s qualifica-<br /> tions for the task? What is his literary<br /> baggage? Has he ever had a literary pupil<br /> before? If so, does that literary pupil now touch<br /> the stars? And, above all, we repeat—what<br /> about that pound a week? When does it begin?<br /> When will it end? And, lastly, what is it for?<br /> In another column is noticed, by Mr. Thring, a<br /> letter from the Publisliers&#039; Circular. I have<br /> only one thing to add—viz., the animus discovered<br /> towards the Authors&#039; Society. It is a body, says the<br /> writer, which &quot;lacks any representative character.&quot;<br /> One would like to know what this ingenuous sniffer<br /> means by a &quot;representative &quot; character &#039;( What<br /> is it? What constitutes &quot; representative charac-<br /> ter &quot;? The Society has between 1400 and<br /> 1500 members. Has this publisher seen their<br /> names? He certainly has not. How does he<br /> know them? But there are the names on the<br /> Council: are not these names sufficiently repre-<br /> sentative? There are among them leading names<br /> of statesmen, historians, poets, artists, lawyers,<br /> scientific men, musicians, educational men,<br /> novelists, dramatists, journalists, antiquaries,<br /> essayists, and travellers. What more is wanted to<br /> make it a representative body? As for the ques-<br /> tion asked, Mr. Thring has sufficiently answered<br /> it in his paper. The publisher quoted actually<br /> disputes the right of any person, in any quarrel, to<br /> refer the subject to any other person he chooses,<br /> with all the documents connected with it: and<br /> especially the right of referring a question, with<br /> all the documents connected with it, to a solicitor<br /> —to any solicitor he chooses, whether to Mr.<br /> Thring, or to the other solicitors to the Society,<br /> Messrs. Field, Roscoe, and Emery. Certainly<br /> we should be quite prepared to defend any action<br /> brought by any publisher, or company of pub-<br /> lishers, against ourselves for receiving and ad-<br /> vising upon any documents whatever connected<br /> with literary property. But the letter-looks as if<br /> the publisher had just seen an unfortunate<br /> author, and heard from him (or her) that he (or<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 136 (#148) ############################################<br /> <br /> i.36 THE AUTHOR.<br /> she) was going to take all the documents to the<br /> Society. And although, which is quite true, the<br /> Seen tary points out that both the Committee and<br /> himself are bound to secresy, the Committee<br /> may, if they please, and if the author allows,<br /> publish the whole case. It would then be open<br /> to the poor ill-used publisher to take any action<br /> he chose. .<br /> In another column will be found an extract<br /> from the Library World, the organ of libraries.<br /> The writer complains of the cramped condition of<br /> English free libraries owing to the limitation<br /> clause as to the rate. I confess that I have small<br /> sympathy with the complaint, for these reasons.<br /> First, I do not think that a free library ought to<br /> be expected to furnish all the new books, or even<br /> all the best new books to its readers. Even at the<br /> London Library, for which the members pay<br /> three pounds a year subscription, we frequently<br /> wait some months for certain new books greatly<br /> in demand. But if the library goes on adding<br /> every year only a hundred pounds&#039; worth of<br /> books, many of them cheap and second hand, it<br /> will before long have alibrary equal to any demands<br /> likely to be made upon it. As regards the<br /> limitation clause, one or two London districts have<br /> endeavoured to get it raised. The action terrifies<br /> the ratepayer, to whom an extra penny in the<br /> pound means an additional burden. People in<br /> easy circumstances do not understand what the<br /> extra penny may mean to a struggling shop-<br /> keeper who must consider every sixpence. I am<br /> persuaded that it is the fear of this increase<br /> which has hitherto defeated all attempts made<br /> to get a free library in Islington and Marylebone.<br /> Let us do all we can with the penny rate and get<br /> as many libraries as we can. Could not the<br /> librarians, where the library is cramped, make<br /> a list of books wanted and send it round among<br /> the more wealthy classes?<br /> Mr. Andrew Lang has been complaining that<br /> &quot;the world is fundamentally hostile to litera-<br /> ture &quot;: that it hates to spend money on books.<br /> And then he has a gibe at The Author as<br /> follows:—<br /> The spirit of these remarks I find rebuked whenever I<br /> torn from literature to authorship and study The Author.<br /> In that great commercial organ, among the most eloquent<br /> remarks on discount, I seem to find traces of optimism,<br /> traces of belief in a great literary public. I do not believe<br /> in any such thing, even if some novels, at 6s., find a market<br /> for 100,000 copies. Even that (considering how bad most<br /> of these books are, how ignorant, coarse, emphatic, and<br /> illiterate) is relatively a very small demand. Think of the<br /> millions of England, and think of how many of them buy a<br /> book, say, of an author who is a man of genius, and<br /> &quot;popular,&quot; Mr. Kipling or Mr. Stevenson. What a<br /> beggarly account! As for those who read Marlowe, or<br /> Montaigne, they are the tiniest of remnants.<br /> It is pleasing to find that he does read The<br /> Author. It is the business of the paper to dis-<br /> course upon discounts and everything else which<br /> may concern the management of Literary Pro-<br /> perty. Those who are not interested in the sub-<br /> ject are not expected to read the paper at all. Ab<br /> regards the &quot; optimism,&quot; my own opinion of the<br /> subject is utterly different from that of Mr. Lang.<br /> It is based upon a study of the actual facts,<br /> which are, briefly, these :—<br /> (1) The question of money:<br /> The vast mass of the people simply have no<br /> money to buy books at the price at which they<br /> are issued, say from 2*. 6d. upwards. How can<br /> a working man on 30*. a week spend 10s. in<br /> buying a book? How many books of 4*. 6d.<br /> can he buy in a year? In fact, he never buys a<br /> book at all. To get at the class of book-buyers<br /> eliminate a vast majority of the people. What<br /> about the remainder, which means about two and<br /> a half millions, or 400,000 families? It is for<br /> these 400,000 that all our books are published.<br /> And I do think that if a book is bought by a<br /> quarter of these families, and borrowed by the<br /> other three-quarters, it is as much as any one can<br /> expect.<br /> 2. The use of the free libraries:<br /> The working man reads books, though he does<br /> not buy them. He goes in multitudes to the free<br /> libraries, where the librarians&#039; lists show that he<br /> makes a very good choice of books.<br /> 3. The wide purchase of cheap books:<br /> Whenever a good popular book —&quot; Lorna<br /> Doone,&quot; for instance—is issued at sixpence it is<br /> bought by the hundred thousand.<br /> There is a so-called &quot;library,&quot; containing<br /> many excellent books, which is printed on vile<br /> paper and sold at less than sixpence. This<br /> &quot;library &quot; has sold by millions.<br /> For these reasons I say that the people do<br /> read books: that they do buy them when they<br /> can afford it: and that their choice in the free<br /> libraries is on the whole sound. Of course it<br /> would be easy to pick out certain books and hold<br /> them up to derision as popular favourites. They<br /> may be favourites for a season: but they quickly<br /> die and are forgotten. Walter Besant.<br /> THE LIBRAEY AND THE LIMITATION<br /> CLAUSE.<br /> IT is perfectly certain that the cramped and<br /> poverty-stricken condition of English<br /> libraries, brought about by a grudging<br /> Parliamentary limitation, has prevented, or at<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 137 (#149) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> i37<br /> least postponed, the progress and development of<br /> these institutions to a great extent. When we<br /> contemplate what has been accomplished on the<br /> meagre income doled out to libraries, we marvel<br /> at the high measure of efficiency and degree of<br /> success attained. But when we look a little<br /> closer and consider what could be done with<br /> sufficient means, and what ought to be done to<br /> give public libraries their maximum value, it is<br /> soon borne in upon us that the most popular<br /> library in the country does little more than just<br /> touch the fringe of its area of work and useful-<br /> ness. According to the statistics carefully col-<br /> lected by the Government of the country, about<br /> 60 per cent. of the inhabitants of any town are<br /> possible users of public libraries. That is to say,<br /> 60 in every 100 of population are between the<br /> ages of ten and sixty, with a fair allowance for<br /> illiterates. But suppose we knock off other<br /> 10 per cent. as a further allowance on account of<br /> children under twelve and illiterates or weaklings<br /> of all ages, we still get 50 per cent. of readers who<br /> are capable of using a library. How, then, does it<br /> happen that not a single town in the country has<br /> even 25 per cent. of its population enrolled as<br /> borrowers, while a majority of places can only<br /> boast of from 5 to 10 per cent.? The reason is<br /> not far to seek. Owing to the starvling income<br /> aforesaid, few libraries can afford to buy more<br /> than one copy of a popular newspaper or maga-<br /> zine, or one or two copies of a popular book at a<br /> time. And what is the use of a single copy of a<br /> popular book among 10,000 possible borrowers,<br /> or of one solitary copy of a very popular illus-<br /> trated journal among 50,000 possible readers?<br /> Has anyone ever imagined what would take place<br /> in a town of 100,000 inhabitants supposing every<br /> possible reader availed himself of his right to use<br /> the library? According to our computation<br /> there would be 50,000 persons anxious to be<br /> served with the latest books and journals on<br /> topics of the day, and to do this effectually would<br /> Tequire not one, but five large libraries with<br /> huge news rooms attached and stocks of not less<br /> than 20,000 volumes each. Instead of this, all<br /> that a town of this size can generally do for<br /> itself is to provide 20,000 or 30,000 volumes, 300<br /> journals and magazines, and seats for 200 or 250<br /> readers! For every reader or borrower who uses<br /> a public library, at least two others decline to<br /> come because they cannot obtain what they want<br /> and will not trouble to wait. Again, no public<br /> library can reach the poorer classes because it will<br /> not, and cannot afford to, seek them out and bring<br /> literature to their very doors. We have thrown<br /> out these thoughts in the hope that they may<br /> suggest to librariaus the connection between<br /> extension of work and increase of income, and the<br /> necessity which exists for agitation, in order to<br /> receive such a recognition as will make it possible<br /> for libraries to double, if not quadruple, their<br /> present volume of work and usefulness.—From<br /> the Library World.<br /> REEVE, OF THE &quot;EDINBURGH.&quot; *<br /> TO have edited the Edinburgh Review for<br /> forty years is an experience which could<br /> not fail to be guarantee of an interesting<br /> history, and the Memoirs of Henry Reeve, which<br /> have just been published by Professor Laughton,<br /> possess, doubtless, considerable value for the<br /> literary aud the political observers of the period.<br /> Political, for Henry Reeve at the age of twenty-<br /> five was introduced to official life by being<br /> appointed, through the influence of Lord Lans-<br /> downe, to the Clerkship of Appeals; he became<br /> a great political journalist, on terms of inti-<br /> macy with Cabinet Ministers and Princes, abroad<br /> as well as at home, and receiving those confidences<br /> which exalted personages impart only to such as<br /> do not fail to command an excellent discretion.<br /> After a long connection with the Times, Eeeve<br /> in 1855 succeeded Sir George Cornewall Lewis in<br /> the editorship of the Edinburgh Review, and<br /> served it, as we have said, for forty years. The<br /> Author is not a review; and we do not attempt<br /> to review these volumes, but merely to record, as<br /> far as our space will afford, a few of the literary<br /> incidents contained in them.<br /> Born at Norwich in 1813, Reeve as a mere lad<br /> enjoyed the society of great men. &quot;It often<br /> occurred even to himself,&quot; we are told, &quot; that<br /> there was something unusual and extraordinary<br /> in a lad of eighteen or twenty, or even of twenty-<br /> four, with no particular advantage of birth,<br /> associating familiarly with men of European<br /> reputation, Ambassadors, Ministers of State,<br /> poets, painters, or musicians.&quot; In his twenty-<br /> second year he was in Paris, and frequently met<br /> Thackeray there. Writing from Paris in January,<br /> 1835, Reeve says:—&quot;Thackeray is flourishing,<br /> and after the opera we took tea, and had a long<br /> talk of the doings of French artists. He com-<br /> plains of the impurity of their ideas, and of the<br /> jargon of a corrupt life, which they so unwisely<br /> admit into their painting rooms.&quot; Again in<br /> 1836 Reeve writes from Paris to his mother:—<br /> I continue to see the Macaulays a good deal. The girls<br /> are dreadfully like Tom Babington, and very amusing from<br /> * &quot; Memoirs of the Life and Correspondence of Henry<br /> Eeeve, C.B., D.C.L.&quot; By John Knox Laughton, ALA<br /> Two voIb. Longmans, Green, and Co. 28*.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 138 (#150) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> a mixture of saintship and politios, ignorance of the world,<br /> and knowledge of Parliament. ... I have seen a good deal<br /> of Thaokeray this last week. That excellent and faoetious<br /> being is at the present moment editing an English paper<br /> here, in opposition to Galignani&#039;s. Bat, what is more<br /> ominous, he has fallen in love, and talks of being married in<br /> less than twenty years. What is there so affecting as<br /> matrimony? I dined yesterday with his objeot, who is a<br /> nice, simple, girlish girl—a niece of that old Colonel Shawe<br /> whom one always meets at the Sterlings&#039;.<br /> Professor Laughton says that the statement<br /> about Thackeray editing an English paper&quot; seems<br /> to be a mistake.&quot; Reeve visited Balzac, too, in<br /> those days—January, 1835—and was extraordi-<br /> narily impressed:—<br /> Such a singular contrast of profound philosophy—more of<br /> intuition than of analysis—combined with the variety and<br /> prodigality of an Eastern story-teller, expressed in a oopious<br /> and brilliant language, frequently degenerating into the<br /> violence or rising into the ostentation of positive insanity, I<br /> have never met with. Balzac was seated in an elegant<br /> apartment, situated at the very extremity of this side of<br /> Paris, which he took because from some whim or strange<br /> reason the house is called &quot; La Fabrique de l&#039;Absolu.&quot; To<br /> this Fabrique we found our way, and, at the end of a long,<br /> low room, as it were, between a study and a boudoir, we<br /> found the Magician himself, ■urrounded by proofs and<br /> manuscripts, which he was correcting and composing with a<br /> rapidity that sets all the printers of Paris at naught. He<br /> talked chiefly of himself, with the most boisterous and<br /> fantastical self-acclamation, for it was more than approba-<br /> tion. . . .<br /> There are many glimpses of famous people<br /> up and down these volumes. Of Sydney Smith,<br /> for instance, we have the following anecdote:—<br /> We got Sydney on the overpowering topio of Macaulay.<br /> Macaulay is laying waste society with his waterspout of<br /> talk; people in his company burst for want of an oppor-<br /> tunity of dropping in a word; he confounds soliloquy and<br /> colloquy. Nothing oould equal my diversion at seeing<br /> T. B. M. go to the Counoil tie other day in a fine laced<br /> coat, neat green bodied glass chariot, and a feather in his<br /> hat. Sydney S. had said to Lord Melbourne that Macaulay<br /> was a book in breeches. Lord M. told the Queen; bo when-<br /> ever she sees her new Secretary of Wax, she goes into fits<br /> of laughter. I said that the worst feature in Maoaulay&#039;s<br /> character was his appalling memory; he haa a weapon more<br /> than anyone else in the world&#039;s tournament. &quot;Aye,<br /> indeed,&quot; s&amp;id S. S.,&quot; why, he could repeat the whole History<br /> of the Virtuous Blue Coat Boy, in three vols., post 8vo,<br /> without a slip. He should take two tablespoonfuls of the<br /> waters of Lethe every morning to oorreot his retentive<br /> powers.&quot;<br /> Bulwer Lytton, Landor, Macaulay, and<br /> Sheridan Knowles are names that occur fre-<br /> quently in the memoirs. &quot;Dinner at Proctor&#039;s<br /> with Harriet Martineau, Carlyle and his wife,<br /> Thackeray, and Kinglake &quot;—is one of the entries in<br /> Reeve&#039;s diary. &quot;Carlyle was so offensive I never<br /> made it up with him.&quot; The circumstances of the<br /> breach with Carlyle are not related, but it is<br /> known to have occurred through Carlyle remark-<br /> ing softly, when Reeve had the temerity to differ<br /> with him in discussion, &quot;You&#039;re a puir creature,<br /> you&#039;re a puir creature.&quot; Of Landor this 1<br /> related:—<br /> Landor, you know, is quite as vain of not being read as<br /> Bulwer is of being the most popular writer of the day.<br /> Nothing can equal the contempt with which he treats any-<br /> body who has more than six readers and three admirers,<br /> unless it be that saying of Hegel&#039;s, when he declared that<br /> nobody understood his writings but himself, and that not<br /> always.<br /> Reeve was perfectly sensible of his own value.<br /> In his fifteen years&#039; connection with the Timet<br /> (1840-1855), he tells us, he wrote about 2482<br /> full-paid articles, and received upwards of<br /> £13,000 for them. &quot;Its circulation rose in fifteen<br /> years, from about 13,000 when I joined it to<br /> 62,000 when I left it, and although I do not<br /> take to myself any peculiar share in this result,<br /> for many other contributors wrote as well as I<br /> did, and the editor was usually judicious and<br /> always active, yet I doubt whether any other<br /> writer had occasion to do as much.&quot; And on a<br /> subsequent occasion he wrote: &quot;The Review<br /> suffers when I am too busy to write in it.&quot; There<br /> is much of interest in these volumes regarding the<br /> publication of the memoirs of Greville, for whom<br /> Reeve was, of course, literary trustee. Journal-<br /> ist of the old school, and holding in high regard<br /> the moral responsibility of the journalist, Reeve<br /> was opposed to anything in the nature of &quot;log-<br /> rolling,&quot; and on that ground was a firm believer<br /> in anonymity. Writing to Mr. T. N. Longman<br /> on Dec. 26, 1891, he says:—<br /> I thought it best to tell Froude frankly that the review of<br /> his book (&quot; The Divorce of Catharine of Aragon &quot;) in the<br /> Edinburgh would be an unfavourable one. At the same<br /> time I disclaimed in the strongest language any disposition<br /> to make a personal attack on himself. Unfortunately he<br /> seems to ascribe adverse criticism of his works to personal<br /> animosity, which, in his case, is entirely wanting.<br /> It is a painful necessity. Froude and his book are too<br /> important to be passed over in silence. But the judicial<br /> character and consistency, and I may say honour, of the<br /> Review absolutely require that the truth should be told<br /> about the book. I should consider it a derogation to my<br /> duty to the Review if, from personal motives or affection, I<br /> suppressed an adverse criticism of a work which impera-<br /> tively demands an answer. ... I have modified as far<br /> as possible any expressions which appeared to be of too<br /> censorious a character; but it is impossible to avoid<br /> condemning a mistaken book because the author is a per-<br /> sonal friend. Judex damnatur si nocens absolvitur is our<br /> motto.<br /> Finally, there is the following interesting<br /> reference to Reeve&#039;s literary advice to the<br /> Messrs. Longman, whose &quot;reader&quot; he was for<br /> many years:—<br /> Books in French, German, or Italian, offered for trans-<br /> lation, MSS. in English offered for publication—whatever<br /> there was of grave, serious, or important, as well as a good<br /> deal that was not, was sent to him for a first or a revised<br /> opinion. And this opinion was given very frankly, and<br /> most oommonly in the fewest possible words:—&quot; My advioe<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 139 (#151) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> is that you have nothing to do with it &quot; was a not nnfrequent<br /> formula. Another, less freqnent, was:—&quot; He—the aspirant<br /> to literary fame and emolument—can neither write nor<br /> spell English&quot;; &quot;I wish they wouldn&#039;t send their trash to<br /> me&quot; was an occasional prayer. &quot;Seems to me sheer non-<br /> sense&quot;; &quot;What a waste of time and labour!&quot; &quot;It&#039;s<br /> very provoking that people should attempt to write books<br /> who cannot write English,&quot; were oooasional reports. Of<br /> course many of his judgments were very different: &quot;A<br /> work of great interest, which must have a large sale &quot;;<br /> &quot;Secure this if you possibly can&quot;; &quot;A most able work, but<br /> will scarcely command a remunerative sale.&quot; . . . As<br /> it was with printed books and larger MSS., eo it was with<br /> articles submitted for the Review; but he did not encourage<br /> casual contributions, and seldom—perhaps never—accepted<br /> any without some previous understanding. The political<br /> articles and the reviews of important books were almost<br /> invariably written in response to a direct invitation; but<br /> whether the articles sent in were invited or offered, he<br /> equally reserved the right to express his approval or dis-<br /> approval or disagreement, and to insist, if necessary, on the<br /> article being remodelled or withdrawn.<br /> SOME SOUTHEY LETTERS.<br /> AN interesting series of Southey&#039;s private<br /> letters appeared for the first time in<br /> the August number of Blackwood&#039;s. They<br /> are written to his friend John May, with whom<br /> he became acquainted in 1795 at Lisbon, and<br /> to whom he dedicated his short and incom-<br /> plete autobiography. They are very personal,<br /> and give many valuable glimpses of the poet&#039;s<br /> state of mind. When his little daughter is<br /> dying in the autumn of 1803, he writes that<br /> &quot;never man enjoyed purer happiness than I<br /> for the last twelve months,&quot; and &quot;my plans<br /> are now all wrecked.&quot; After having been at<br /> a bull fight, he wrote that &quot;the pain inflicted<br /> by the sight was expiation enough for his folly<br /> in going at all; and he added, &quot;I cannot under-<br /> stand the pleasure excited by a bull fight, and it<br /> is honourable to the English character that none<br /> of our nation frequent these spectacles.&quot; In a<br /> letter dated Oct. 29, 1800, he discusses the pro-<br /> posal to put his brother Henry in a profession,<br /> and remarks that for the first time in his life he<br /> has the power, &quot;or at least it seems so,&quot; of<br /> raising 100 guineas to place him under a provin-<br /> cial surgeon for four or five years till he is old<br /> enough to practice for himself. He explains the<br /> expectation of this money, and indicates the self-<br /> sacrifice in his disposal of it, as follows:<br /> My metrical romance goes by the King George to market,<br /> and I ask this sum as the price of a first edition. I have<br /> little doubt of obtaining it. I had designed to furnish a<br /> house with this money, and anchor myself, but this is a<br /> a more important oall.<br /> Southey had been advised at this time to try<br /> his fate at the East Indian Bar. He doubted<br /> whether the fortune to be gained could pay for<br /> the loss of the friends in whose society &quot;so much<br /> of my happiness consists. The fate of Camoens<br /> stares me in the face, and if I did go, prudence<br /> would be the ostensible motive, but the real one<br /> would be curiosity. I do long to become<br /> acquainted with old Brama, and see the great<br /> Indian fig tree; so at the end of twenty years<br /> time I should come home with a copper-coloured<br /> face, an empty purse, and a portfolio full.&quot;<br /> He expresses the following amusing philo-<br /> sophy also in 1800 :—<br /> Yon remember the doggerel that &quot; learning is better than<br /> house or land.&quot; &#039;Tis a lying proverb! A good lifehold<br /> estate is worth all the fame of the world in perpetuity, and<br /> a comfortable honee rather more desirable than a monument<br /> in Westminster Abbey.<br /> And on his financial position we have the<br /> following very interesting light in the autumn of<br /> 1816:<br /> Herewith I send you a draft upon Longman for .£100, at<br /> three dajs&#039; sight. The last twelve months have proved<br /> highly advantageous to my monied ooncerns, and for the<br /> first time have made the balanoe of his account in my<br /> favour. There is good reason for hoping that it will oon-<br /> tinne so, and that it will not be long before I shall be able<br /> to dear off my debt with you. &quot;Koderick &quot; has produced<br /> for me above .£500, by three editions, and the fourth will<br /> by this time have paid its expenses. Of the &quot; Pilgrimage&quot;<br /> 2000 were printed; they were all sold in the course of two-<br /> months, leaving me a profit of £2X5. My account only<br /> oomes up to midsummer, and therefore does not inolude the<br /> &#039;. Carmen Nuptiale,&quot; but of the fate of which I know<br /> nothing, nor indeed what number was printed.<br /> The prospect before me is very good. The produce of<br /> my current publications may be reckoned at .£200 a year<br /> certainly, not improbably at twice the sum; and Murray<br /> pays me so well for the Quarterly that I hope there will be<br /> no occasion to draw much upon the other fund for my<br /> household expenses. For some artioles he offers me .£100<br /> per article—such was that upon the Poor in the last<br /> number, and one upon Foreign Travellers in England which<br /> is designed for this, and which I am busy in completing.<br /> The preface to &quot;Mort Arthur,&quot; for which I am reading<br /> much black letter, at some oost of eyesight and no little<br /> expense of time, will give me .£200, and the second volume<br /> of &quot; Brazil &quot; about half as much—a preposterous instanoe<br /> of the caprice upon which a man of letters depends for his<br /> remuneration! Perhaps the average may be fair at last,<br /> but it is injurious as well as ridiculous, and I shall derive<br /> my main support from what other persons might do as well,<br /> and what might never be done at all; while for works of<br /> permanent value and great labour, for which peculiar know-<br /> ledge, peculiar talents, and peculiar industry are required,<br /> the profit I obtain would scarcely exceed, and perhaps not<br /> amount to, the expenses of the documents.<br /> The letter from which the following is extracted<br /> was written by Robert Southey, on April 22,<br /> 1834, to the late John A. Heraud, in whose<br /> &quot;Memoirs,&quot; by his daughter, just published by<br /> Mr. George Redway, it appears for the first time,<br /> with many other letters from the same poet:—<br /> Yon oould not apply to a worse person than myself for<br /> counsel as to any dealings with publishers. My general<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 140 (#152) ############################################<br /> <br /> 140<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> practice is to let them take the whole risk of the work, and<br /> give me half the eventual profits. Tha&amp;is, after the costs<br /> -of publication are defrayed, a third of the surplus goes as<br /> the allowance of the trade (this need to be Longmans&#039; allow-<br /> ance—Murray allowed somewhat more than a third), half of<br /> the remainder then oomes to me. The publishers have then<br /> the lion&#039;s share—but they have the lion&#039;s power, and can<br /> always help themselves, which an author cannot.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—The Pecuniary Position op Writers.<br /> IT is impossible to feel anything but the<br /> highest admiration and respect for the<br /> altruistic movement to better writers&#039;<br /> pecuniary position. But are there not insuper-<br /> able difficulties in his way?<br /> The point seems to be this: Taking a full<br /> average of books published, there is a certain<br /> profit. These books are created by writers; they<br /> are printed, bound, and put before the public by<br /> publishers. It is objected that (on the average)<br /> the profits are unfairly divided—the authors get<br /> too little, the publishers too much. The question<br /> of binders&#039; and printers&#039; profits does not, I think,<br /> •come in?<br /> The supply of books comes from writers, the<br /> .demand for books is from publishers. Surely the<br /> relative profits made are subject to the ordinary<br /> laws affecting supply and demand? And what<br /> have we? A fairly constant periodic demand,<br /> and at all times a supply enormously greater than<br /> the demand! Necessarily, I submit, publishers<br /> can make their own terms.<br /> But the matter does not end here. The supply<br /> is almost infinitely variable in quality, variable<br /> both in artistic merit and—a very different<br /> thing—in selling value. Now, the few writers<br /> who can supply things of known, acknowledged<br /> value can, I believe, always make their own<br /> terms with publishers? But the others? No<br /> man can assess either the artistic or pecuniary<br /> value of his own work. And the publisher?<br /> Aided by his reader, he guesses at the value, and<br /> on his guess pays. Surely in all these cases the<br /> author cannot complain if, with no personal<br /> pecuniary risk, he gets the chance he wants of<br /> catching the ear of the public. Let the author<br /> .once catch that rough, thick-skinned ear and he<br /> may hold it for even a lifetime and make his own<br /> terms with the publisher for the dullest repeated<br /> vibrations he may choose to supply.<br /> Again, can you lay down hard-and-fast rules<br /> fixing relative profit? The goods suppplied vary<br /> from garbage to pearls; the public demand is<br /> bizarre. My friend Jones&#039;s little romance &quot; Totsey,<br /> a Stray,&quot; is in its tenth thousand, while my work<br /> of genius, &quot;An Investigation into the Psycho-<br /> logical Aspects of the Loves of Amelia Chol-<br /> mondeley, with Notes on the Connection between<br /> the Darwinian Theory and the Evolution of<br /> Affection,&quot; cannot find a publisher I<br /> I have written above from a purely pecuniary<br /> point of view. But there is a moral, an artistic<br /> view. Dealing with romance, of the many books<br /> weekly published it were better for the world if<br /> most had never been. There has never, I<br /> believe, been a time when England has shown<br /> greater general power, even genius, in romance.<br /> But achievement? How many men, possibly of<br /> genius, have we who have startled us by a first<br /> great work of originality and who now repeat<br /> themselves with careless, pale imitation? Has<br /> art gained from the modern pecuniary success of<br /> great writers? Has not the absorption of known<br /> men into the inhumanity, the cross-gartered art<br /> of London society led to the concealment of the<br /> wood of humanity by the veneer of elaborately<br /> polished language?<br /> Let no man, no woman, take up romance<br /> writing as a profession; let only those write who<br /> cannot help writing. And then, though many of<br /> us must still continue to give the world bad work,<br /> the literary man will take that position which is<br /> rightly his, and the supply will be reasonably<br /> decreased. X.<br /> [The answer to the above letter seems to be as<br /> follows:<br /> (1) The writer&#039;s position has been so much<br /> improved by the action of the Society, that the<br /> difficulties are proved not to be insuperable. (2)<br /> The demand for books does not come from pub-<br /> lishers, but from the public. The supply of what<br /> is wanted is below rather than above the demand.<br /> The supply of what is not wanted by the public,<br /> but is furnished by the publisher, is certainly<br /> in excess. (3) The demand for certain writers<br /> is always below the supply. In many branches<br /> of science and in general literature the writers<br /> whose works are in request by the public ought<br /> to be able to make their own terms for the<br /> administration of their property. There are<br /> certain writers who &quot;X.&quot; seems to think are<br /> supplying the demand, but if the public does<br /> not care for and does not want their work, how<br /> can they supply a demand?<br /> The artistic side must not be mixed up with the<br /> commercial side. We have again and again<br /> repeated that the business of the Society is<br /> simply the maintenance and defence of literary<br /> property. This, we are ready to admit, and<br /> have always admitted, may be totally different<br /> from literary art. As regards the danger<br /> of writing feebly after the production of strong<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 141 (#153) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 141<br /> work, there is no doubt that this danger<br /> does exist. It would be, however, more to the<br /> point if our correspondent would suggest how a<br /> novelist or an artist who has once devoted his<br /> whole time to the production of the best work<br /> possible to him, is to continue to live when he<br /> becomes conscious that his work is no longer on<br /> the same high level.—W. B.]<br /> II.—A Plea, for Cut Edges.<br /> Once or twice, recently, protests have appeared<br /> against the custom many publishers have of<br /> issuing books with uncut edges. Nothing, I<br /> venture to say, is more annoying than to purchase<br /> a book, to settle oneself for an hour&#039;s enjoyment,<br /> and then to have the unnecessary and uncom-<br /> fortable labour of cutting its edges. If, as is<br /> sometimes the case, this occurs in a railway<br /> carriage when one is minus a paper knife, the<br /> enjoyment of the book is considerably jeopardised.<br /> This can be easily obviated by three or four<br /> strokes of the printer&#039;s guillotine. Moreover,<br /> edges so cut are infinitely preferable to the rough<br /> state they assume when cut with even the sharpest<br /> paper-cutter. Lately several publishers have<br /> adopted the method of sending out their books<br /> with cut edges. This arrangement is a distinct<br /> boon to the reader, and if the practice were made<br /> a hard-and-fast rule the innovation would, 1 feel<br /> sure, be hailed with unfeigned delight by every<br /> book-lover. John C. Shannon.<br /> III.—&quot;Exchanges.&quot;<br /> A few evenings ago, my own favourite<br /> journal being sold our, I purchased for id.<br /> eleven square feet of paper bearing printing<br /> both back and front. Placed one on top of<br /> another, the columns of printed matter might<br /> rival in height a three-storied dwelling-house,<br /> whilst the total length of the lines would extend<br /> over a quarter of a mile. You will probably<br /> wonder that I should write to complain of so<br /> generous a pennyworth, but, after perusing it, I<br /> felt that I should not be doing my duty to that<br /> large body of your members who can be classified<br /> under the heading of &quot;Occasional Contributors,&quot;<br /> if I failed to draw attention to the growing<br /> tendency to fill the pages of a paper with<br /> &quot;Exchanges &quot;—though what the proprietors of<br /> the journals who kindly lent their contents to fill<br /> up this paper got in exchange I am unable to<br /> say. In the most prominent part of the paper I<br /> found that the New York Herald, per Reuter,<br /> contributed the news from Jamaica; the Daily<br /> Telegraph (two separate paragraphs), the<br /> Egyptian news; the Morning Post, matter apper-1<br /> taimng to Canada. The Dreyfus case was dealt<br /> with in a satisfactory manner through the kind-<br /> ness of the Figaro, the Journal, the Gaulois, and<br /> the Matin, per Reuter, who also supplied the<br /> tidings from Denmark. A column and a quarter<br /> of CasselPs Magazine must have saved 30s.<br /> at least to the proprietor of the paper;<br /> whilst the Local Government Board&#039;s Report<br /> must have been worth 10s. to the same individual<br /> who had to thank the special correspondent of<br /> the Daily Telegraph, the Figaro, the Daily<br /> Chronicle, and, of course, Reuter, for &quot;The<br /> Fashoda Question.&quot; Some iuteresting personal<br /> pars were culled from Vanity Fair, the Daily<br /> Telegraph—our editor&#039;s favourite journal—the<br /> Daily Mail, and the Times. A special article<br /> on the late Queen of Denmark (cheerfully contri-<br /> buted by the English Illustrated Magazine)<br /> ran to three-quarters of a column, and the<br /> Daily News &quot;exchanged&quot; half a column of<br /> &quot;Mount Vesuvius.&quot; The City Press lent a small<br /> paragraph about a house in six parishes;<br /> Reuter and the Daily Telegraph tackled the<br /> question of Crete&#039;s future, and other interesting<br /> paragraphs came from the &quot;Central News&quot; and<br /> the &quot;London News Agency. The Chinese crisis<br /> was considered so important that only telegrams<br /> from the Times and Dalziel could do satisfac-<br /> tory justice to the subject, but they did not<br /> occupy so much space as the two-thirds of a<br /> column from the Daily News on Mr. Watt&#039;s<br /> latest scheme, even when a par. re &quot; Samory *<br /> contributed by the Eclair was thrown in. Two<br /> paragraphs based on Daily Telegraph and Times<br /> reports completed the editor&#039;s &quot; exchanges,&quot; and<br /> we can imagine that gentleman laying down his<br /> weary scissors with a sigh, and saying : &quot; Thank<br /> you, my friends, for your kindly hospitality, in<br /> exchange for which I offer several pages of adver-<br /> tisements, my leading article, a few columns of<br /> book reviews, our Money Market columns, and<br /> the signed articles that begin with &#039;Sir,&#039; and are<br /> contributed by my &#039;obedient servants.&#039;&quot;<br /> If the example of this particular editor is<br /> followed by his brethren, the &quot;Occasional Con-<br /> tributor&quot; is doomed; let him take warning,<br /> therefore, and ere it be too late invest his<br /> savings (if he has any) in a stock of well-tem-<br /> pered scissors, for a time will assuredly come<br /> when there will be nothing for him to do but<br /> start an evening paper on modern lines, unless<br /> something can be done in the way of limiting<br /> the proportion of an article, paragraph, or tele-<br /> gram that can be printed with or without<br /> acknowledgment of its original source without<br /> payment to the person who wrote it or the<br /> firm who paid for it in the first place.<br /> An Occasional Victim to Steel<br /> and Steal.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 142 (#154) ############################################<br /> <br /> 142<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> IV.—&quot;The Author&quot; and the Publishers.<br /> After studying for many months your exposures<br /> ,of publishing methods, one conclusion is forced<br /> upon me, namely, that if a publisher wishes to<br /> swindle, no amount of dexterity on the part of the<br /> author can prevent him from doing so. With<br /> all the machinery of secret profits at his disposal,<br /> with little or no probability of checking the<br /> number of copies he professes to have sold, with<br /> the advertisement swindle which you have so<br /> often explained to us, and all the other dodges,<br /> the author is practically at the publisher&#039;s mercy.<br /> On the other hand, if the publisher is an honest<br /> •man, precautions will be unnecessary. An author<br /> is too poor and too busy to investigate the rami-<br /> fications of a dishonest publisher&#039;s business<br /> methods. Give him an honest publisher and let<br /> him do his work in peace. My suggestion is<br /> that the Society should publish for him. By<br /> &quot;publish&quot; I do not mean buy his book out-<br /> right or &quot;speculate&quot; in any sense of the word,<br /> but merely print his book for him, and put it-<br /> upon the market at the best market terms, with<br /> all the advantages of &quot;wholesale&quot; prices for<br /> paper, &amp;c., which the publisher now puts in his<br /> pocket. Let the whole business be absolutely<br /> &quot;straight&quot; and above board. The author pays<br /> for the publication of the book on the advice of<br /> the Society that it has a fair chance of success (or<br /> against the advice of the Society if he chooses).<br /> The Society charges him the actual cost of paper,<br /> eomposing, correcting, binding, advertisement,<br /> and distribution, such a fixed percentage on the<br /> .outlay as experience may show to be necessary<br /> to prevent the Society from losing. All profits<br /> would then go to the author. It is true the author<br /> would have to pay for publication, but in the<br /> &lt;ase of the writer of established repute the<br /> risk would be non-existent; in the case of the<br /> unknown man it would be smaller than it is at<br /> present when his book is published on com-<br /> mission. The So.ciety could then offer the book-<br /> sellers those improved terms which it believes to<br /> be their due, thus stimulating the sale of its<br /> books. All that is wanted for this scheme is a<br /> sound business man, with experience of printing<br /> and publishing, at its head. There must be<br /> scores of members of the Society whom it would<br /> pay better to publish in this way than to take<br /> ostensibly a 15 per cent. royalty while paying<br /> the publisher unacknowledged profits in the form<br /> of discounts and percentages on every item in<br /> ms A Member of the Society.<br /> [I quite agree with the &quot;Member&quot; as to the<br /> only method left possible. The publishers have<br /> deliberately announced their intention of laying<br /> hands on everything except perhaps a miserable<br /> residuum. The only reply is to change the<br /> method. I doubt whether the Society would act<br /> as the &quot; Member&quot; suggests. It would be, how-<br /> ever, quite possible to create a commission pub-<br /> Usher—one who would do no other kind of busi-<br /> ness. For the moment any other business is<br /> taken in hand, the commission work begins to be<br /> neglected. This is natural, for if a publisher can<br /> make 10 per cent. by commission and anything<br /> he pleases by any other way he will prefer that<br /> other way.—W. B.]<br /> BOOS TALK<br /> BY general consent Mr. John Morley had<br /> been selected as the probable writer of<br /> the accredited Life of Mr. Gladstone, and<br /> now the announcement of the fact is formally<br /> made. The task is likely to occupy about three<br /> years, and already Mr. Morley has dealt with a<br /> large part of the correspondence, and has made<br /> considerable progress with the chapters relating<br /> the history of the Home Rule movement of Mr.<br /> Gladstone. During his twenty years&#039; intimate<br /> acquaintance with Mr. Gladstone, Mr. Morley<br /> received long letters from him on practically<br /> every public topic that was engaging his atten-<br /> tion. The biography will be published by Messrs.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Sir Edward Hamilton, one of Mr. Gladstone&#039;s<br /> private secretaries, has written a monograph on<br /> the late statesman, which will be published by<br /> Mr. Murray.<br /> Another political biography, which has just<br /> been completed, is that of Sir Robert Peel, by<br /> Mr. C. S. Parker. This work has been an<br /> exceedingly laborious one, from the amount of<br /> correspondence that had to be gone through and<br /> sifted. Letters to and from the Queen, the<br /> Duke of Wellington, Disraeli, and other impor-<br /> tant contemporaries will be contained in the<br /> work, which Mr. Murray will publish shortly.<br /> Mr. Kinloch Cooke&#039;s biography of the late<br /> Duchess of Teck, from her journals and diaries,<br /> will be published probably in the early days of<br /> next year.<br /> Sir Mountstuart Grant Duff, who published two<br /> interesting and entertaining volumes of his diary<br /> recently, is now adding two others, containing<br /> his diary during the period when he was Governor<br /> of Madras, and also containing his views on home<br /> affairs.<br /> Mrs. Alec Tweedie has in the press a life of<br /> her father, Dr. Harley, of Harley-street. It will<br /> be published by the Scientific Press.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 143 (#155) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 143<br /> Mr. Frederic G. Kitton is preparing a centenary<br /> memoir of the late Dr. Zechariah Buck, the<br /> organist and choirmaster of Norwich Cathedral.<br /> Many of Dr. Buck&#039;s pupils, now in distinguished<br /> positions in the musical world, contribute remini-<br /> scences of him, and the family give their assist-<br /> -ance. The work will be issued in a limited<br /> edition shortly.<br /> A biography of the late Professor Calderwood,<br /> who occupied the chair of Moral Philosophy in<br /> Edinburgh University for twenty years, is being<br /> written by his son and the Rev. D. Woodside of<br /> Glasgow.<br /> Principal Fairbairn has written a book entitled<br /> &quot;&quot; Catholicism—Roman and Anglican,&quot; which will<br /> be brought out immediately.<br /> The Rev. Leighton Pullan is general editor of<br /> a new series of Church Text Books which has<br /> been projected by Messrs. Rivington. The<br /> volumes will be written by Oxford scholars, and<br /> are not intended only for scholars, but also for<br /> the general readers who are desirous of informa-<br /> tion on church history, forms of worship, criti-<br /> cism, &amp;c.<br /> Robert Browning destroyed all his letters and<br /> papers with-the exception of the letters that had<br /> passed between Mrs. Browning and himself<br /> before their marriage. These letters were care-<br /> fully preserved, and while still in vigorous health<br /> Mr. Browning said concerning them: &quot;There<br /> they are—do with them as you please when I am<br /> dead and gone.&quot; The Athenaeum makes the<br /> interesting announcement that the letters will<br /> shortly be published.<br /> The Rev. H. C. Beeching is reprinting his<br /> &quot;Pages from a Private Diary,&quot; papers which for<br /> a time were a conspicuous and entertaining<br /> feature of Comhill Magazine. The volume will<br /> be published soon by Messrs. Smith, Elder, and<br /> Co.<br /> Mr. John Halsham is the author of &quot;Idle-<br /> hurst: A Journal Kept in the Country,&quot; which<br /> Messrs. Smith, Elder, and Co. will publish this<br /> autumn.<br /> The identity of the Mr. W. H. of Shakespeare&#039;s<br /> Sonnets having given rise again to some discus-<br /> sion, h propos of the article by Mr. Sidney Lee on<br /> Thomas Thorpe in the &quot; Dictionary of National<br /> Biography,&quot; Mr. Lee has now asked the critics<br /> of his theory to await, before passing further<br /> censure, the appearance of his forthcoming<br /> biography of Shakespeare.<br /> Mr. Alfred Whitman, of the British Museum,<br /> has written a work on &quot;The Masters of Mezzo-<br /> tint,&quot; which Messrs. Bell will publish, with sixty<br /> illustrations.<br /> A new novel by Mr. W. C. Scully, author of<br /> &quot;Between Sun and Sand,&quot; and other tales of the<br /> South African desert, is being published by<br /> Messrs. Methuen, under the title &quot; A Vendetta of<br /> the Desert.&quot;<br /> Mr. William Westall&#039;s new novel, &quot;A Red<br /> Bridal,&quot; is to be published by Messrs. Chatto<br /> and Windus, who will also issue soon a volume<br /> entitled &quot; Slum Silhouettes,&quot; by Mr. J. D. Bray-<br /> shaw.<br /> Mr. F. G. Aflalo is editing a book on the cost<br /> of sport, with practical information contributed<br /> by a number of the specialists who wrote for the<br /> &quot;Encyclopaedia of Sport,&quot; of which splendid<br /> work Mr. Aflalo was one of the editors. The<br /> actual expenditure involved in angling, shooting,<br /> hunting, and other sports will be estimated for<br /> various incomes, and the scope of the work will<br /> be comprehensive.<br /> Those rights in Mr. William Watson&#039;s works<br /> hitherto held by Messrs. Macmillan have been<br /> purohased by Mr. John Lane, who is preparing a<br /> collected edition of Mr. Watson&#039;s poems in a<br /> single volume, which will appear this season.<br /> Mrs. Pender, an Irish lady, some time ago<br /> wrote an Ulster story of the &#039;98 period entitled<br /> &quot;The Green Cockade.&quot; The book was printed<br /> in Ireland, and the other day the London<br /> firm, Messrs. Downey, received a consign-<br /> ment of 100 copies. Since then, however, a<br /> fire at the printers has destroyed not only the<br /> other sheets of the book that had been printed,<br /> but the type as well.<br /> &quot;The Gospel Writ in Steel&quot; is the title of<br /> Mr. Arthur Paterson&#039;s new novel. It is about<br /> the American Civil War, but the interest<br /> is romantic rather than historical. Messrs.<br /> Innes are the publishers.<br /> One of the chapters of Mr. Justin McCarthy&#039;s<br /> reminiscences, to be published shortly by Messrs.<br /> Chatto and Windus, is entitled &quot; The Princes of<br /> Literature,&quot; and contains Mr. McCarthy&#039;s recol-<br /> lections of Dickens and Thackeray, Carlyle,<br /> Tennyson, Browning. Another chapter deals<br /> with his acquaintanceship with John Stuart Mill.<br /> This week the third volume of the Blackwood<br /> Annals will appear. Mrs. Oliphant, of course,<br /> edited the two already published, and this one,<br /> which brings the story of the publishing house<br /> down to John Blackwood&#039;s death in 1879, has<br /> been compiled by Mrs. Gerald Porter.<br /> Mr. Bennet Burleigh, the war correspondent of<br /> the Daily Telegraph, who has distinguished<br /> himself so greatly in the Soudan, is writing an<br /> account of the campaign down to its close at<br /> Omdurman.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 144 (#156) ############################################<br /> <br /> i44<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &quot;Book Auctions of the Seventeenth Century&quot;<br /> is the next volume in the Book-Lovers&#039; Library,<br /> published by Mr. Stock. The author is Mr.<br /> John Lawler.<br /> The Christmas issue of the Portfolio will be a<br /> monograph on &quot; George Morland and the Evolu-<br /> tion from him of some later Painters,&quot; by Mr. J. T.<br /> Nettleship.<br /> The latest of new magazines is a penny one,<br /> that aims at being fully equal to the sixpenny<br /> monthlies. It is published by Messrs. Cassell,<br /> and its title, the New Penny Magazine is<br /> after the periodical &quot;originated by Charles<br /> Knight, and dear to the reading public in the<br /> days of our fathers.&quot; There are sixty pages,<br /> with numerous illustrations, and the character of<br /> the contents is the same as that of the popular<br /> magazines of to-day.<br /> &quot;The Lays of the Knights,&quot; a book of poems<br /> by the Rev. C. W. Barraud, will be published by<br /> Messrs. Longman.<br /> Mr. J. H. Adeane has edited a work entitled<br /> &quot;The Early Married Life of Maria Josepha,<br /> Lady Stanley, from 1796,&quot; which Messrs. Long-<br /> man will publish shortly.<br /> The letters given in Mrs. Richmond Ritchie&#039;s<br /> introduction to the seventh volume in the valu-<br /> able Biographical Edition of Thackeray&#039;s Works<br /> which she is editing, deal chiefly with the<br /> novelist&#039;s experiences as a lecturer. At a time<br /> when all the relations of the home country with<br /> America are so much discussed, an extract from<br /> one of the letters from Thackeray during a tour<br /> in the States may be found interesting. He is<br /> writing from Boston on Dec. 22, 1852, to Mrs.<br /> Proctor:—<br /> Ab for writing abont this country—about Goshen, about<br /> Canada, flowing with milk and honey, about the friends I<br /> have found here, and who are helping me to procure inde-<br /> pendence for my children, if I cut jokes against them may<br /> I choke on the instant. If I can say anything to show that<br /> my name is really Makepeace, and to increase the source of<br /> love between the two countries, then, please God, I will.<br /> The laugh dies out as we get old, you see, but the love and<br /> the truth don&#039;t, praised be God! And I begin to think of<br /> the responsibilities of this here pen now writing to yon<br /> with a feeling of no small awe.<br /> Mr. Wheatley&#039;s edition of Pepys will be com-<br /> pleted by the issue of the ninth and tenth<br /> volumes in January. The former will contain an<br /> exhaustive index; the latter, a supplementary<br /> volume, will contain appendices and Pepysian<br /> miscellanea.<br /> Bismarck&#039;s memoirs will be published in<br /> English this month by Messrs. Smith, Elder,<br /> and Co. in this country and Messrs. Harper<br /> and Brothers in the United States.<br /> A small album presented by Tennyson to a<br /> fellow-undergraduate when at Cambridge has just<br /> been sold at Messrs. Hodgson and Co.&#039;s sale-room<br /> in Chancery-lane. It contained the original MS.<br /> of St. Agnes&#039; Eve and two other poems, in the<br /> poet&#039;s own handwriting. The little volume<br /> realised the high price of .£32.<br /> &quot;The History of a Man,&quot; by the Man, will be<br /> published shortly by Mr. Burleigh. It deals<br /> with that aspect of human nature which Mr.<br /> Balfour declared the most interesting — the<br /> development of character.<br /> A hitherto unpublished series of historical<br /> studies of the Stuart period by Thomas Carlyle<br /> is being brought out by Messrs. Chapman and<br /> Hall. These were for a projected history of<br /> the first two Stuart Kings of England, and they<br /> are printed from a MS. left under the author&#039;s<br /> will to his niece, and edited by her husband, Mr.<br /> Alexander Carlyle. The volume will be pub-<br /> lished under the title &quot;Historical Sketches of<br /> Noted Persons and Events in the Reigns of<br /> James I. and Charles I.&quot; The portion devoted<br /> to James I. contains chapters on Elizabeth&#039;s<br /> Funeral, Shakespeare, the Gunpowder Plot, the<br /> Hampton Court Conference, &amp;c.<br /> A new Irish story by &quot;Rita&quot; will be published<br /> shortly by Messrs. Hutchinson.<br /> Miss L. S. Tiddeman has just brought out two-<br /> new stories. The first, called &quot; Reine&#039;s Kingdom,&quot;<br /> is published at the National Society&#039;s Depository.<br /> The second, &quot;Rosa&#039;s Repentance,&quot; by Messrs.<br /> Blackie.<br /> A new work by Mr. Fred Reynolds, author of<br /> &quot;A Tangled Garden,&quot; will be published at once by<br /> James Bowden, under the title of &quot;An Idyll of<br /> the Dawn.&quot;<br /> Mrs. Aylmer Gowing&#039;s new book, entitled &quot; A<br /> Touch of the Sun,&quot; will be published early in<br /> this month by Mr. Burleigh.<br /> &quot;The Genius&quot; (6d.), by Lessey Beard, will be<br /> published on the 5th Nov. Another book by the<br /> same author, comprising a collection of short<br /> stories, sketches, &amp;c., will also be ready in<br /> November.<br /> Mrs. Edith E. Cuthell&#039;s new children&#039;s book is<br /> just published by the S.P.C.K., under the title of<br /> &quot;A Bad Little Girl and her Good Little Brother,&quot;<br /> illustrated by Mrs. Farmiloe.<br /> A new novel, entitled &quot;Uncle Jack from<br /> America,&quot; by Edith C. Kenyon and R. G. Soans,<br /> is being published by Simpkin, Marshall, and Co.<br /> The story has been very successful as a serial in<br /> England and America.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 145 (#157) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> »45<br /> OBITUARY.<br /> THE BOOZS OF THE MONTH.<br /> MR. HA.ROLD FREDERIC died at his<br /> residence at Kenley, Surrey, from<br /> syncope, on Oct. 19. He was in his<br /> forty-third year, and had been prostrated since<br /> Aug. 12, on which day he had a stroke of<br /> paralysis. Journalist and author, he was a<br /> native of Utica, and, before becoming a member<br /> of the staff of the New York Times, he edited for<br /> brief periods—first, the Utica Observer, and<br /> afterwards the Albany Evening Journal. In<br /> 1884 he came to England as the special corre-<br /> spondent of the New York Times, for which he<br /> did much brilliant work, and travelled over<br /> Europe. His first novel to appear was &quot; Seth&#039;s<br /> Brother&#039;s Wife&quot; (1887), a study of American<br /> rural life. &quot;In the Valley&quot; and several others<br /> followed, but Mr. Frederic&#039;s most striking success<br /> was achieved with &quot; Illumination,&quot; published in<br /> the spring of 1896—a novel which, by the way,<br /> had the somewhat exceptional distinction of being<br /> published under another title in America, namely,<br /> &quot;The Damnation of Theron Ware.&quot; &quot;March<br /> Hares,&quot; which followed, appeared under a nom, de<br /> guerre, and was a slighter work on London life;<br /> and the one which will be compared with<br /> &quot;Illumination&quot; is his &quot;Gloria Mundi,&quot; a<br /> romance of English social life, which will be pub-<br /> lished to-day. Just before his death he had<br /> revised his last work of fiction, which is called<br /> &quot;The Market Place.&quot;<br /> The late Mr. Gleeson White, the editor of the<br /> Studio, was one of the best-known writers on art<br /> subjects in the metropolis, and connoisseur of<br /> woodcuts and rare prints. His works include<br /> &quot;English Illustration in the Sixties,&quot; &quot; Practical<br /> Designing,&quot; &quot;Salisbury Cathedral,&quot; &quot;Master<br /> Painters of Great Britain.&quot; He published anony-<br /> mously a series of rather notable prose parodies<br /> of well-known authors, under the title &quot; Letters<br /> to Eminent Hands,&quot; and another series, &quot; Letters<br /> to Living Artists.&quot; The ex-Libris series of<br /> books was edited by Mr. Gleeson White, who<br /> also compiled a charming collection of &quot; Ballads<br /> and Rondeaux&quot; for the Canterbury Poets series.<br /> He died suddenly on Oct. 19, at the age of forty-<br /> seven, from typhoid fever contracted during a<br /> recent visit to Italy.<br /> From Ottawa the death is announced of Mr.<br /> William Kingsford, the distinguished Canadian<br /> historian. Mr. Kingsford was born in London in<br /> 1819.<br /> [Sept. 24 to Oct. 22—502 Books.]<br /> Abbott, E. A. St Thomas of Canterbury. 24/- Black.<br /> Adams, E. D. A Girl of To-Day. 3/6. Blackie.<br /> Addison, Kate. Economical Cookery. 1/6. Hodder.<br /> Alexander, W. Primary Convictions. 3/6. Harper.<br /> Alexander, Mrs. The Cost of Her Pride. 6/- White.<br /> Allen, Grant. Venice. Historical Guide. 3/6 net. Richards.<br /> Allen, Phcebe. May-Duke Blossoms. -i,- S.P.O.K.<br /> Ambrose, W., and Ferguson, W. B. band Transfer Acts 1875 and<br /> 1897, and mnd Transfer Rules and Forms 1898, with Notes. 10/-<br /> Butterworth.<br /> Andrews, 0. M. Historical Development of Modern Europe. Vol. 2.<br /> 1850-97. 12/6. Putnam.<br /> Andrews, M. The Child of the Lighthouse. 1/6. W.Gardner.<br /> Anonymous (A Literary Club). Various Quills. 5/- Arnold.<br /> Anonymous (J. A.). The Coming of Spring. 1/- net. Blackwell.<br /> Anonymous (iff. A. B.). Man-Stories of a Black Snake 6/-<br /> Whlttaker.<br /> Anonymous (A. M. F.). 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323	https://historysoa.com/items/show/323	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 07 (December 1898)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+07+%28December+1898%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 07 (December 1898)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1898-12-01-The-Author-9-7					149–172																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1898-12-01">1898-12-01</a>							7			18981201	tTbe H u t b o r,<br /> (Tlie Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. 7.] DECEMBER 1, 1898. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notioe that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only.<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> joets whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> EOB some years it has been the praotioe to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices, &amp;o., for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to oarry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—.<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; offioe expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give np American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both aides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum oiroulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to tl e<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> Q 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 150 (#162) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> I. INVERY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> lu advice npon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispnte arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advice<br /> sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is snch that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with oopyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon snch questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed dooument to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudnlent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that you may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reoeption of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Society now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 2let of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> communicate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Offioe without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, &amp;c.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanoed 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correct: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount 0barged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production &quot; for advertising. Of course, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6«. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> The Editor is always glad to receive short papers and<br /> communications on all subjects connected with literature<br /> from members and others. Nothing can do more good to<br /> the Society than to make The Author complete, attractive,<br /> and interesting. Will those who are willing to aid in this<br /> work send their names and the special subjects on which<br /> they are willing to write?<br /> FROM THE COMMITTEE.<br /> THE following resolution was passed by the<br /> Committee of Management at their meeting<br /> held at the offices of the Society on Tuesday,<br /> June 14, 1898:<br /> &quot;It was resolved that if it was thought advis-<br /> able the Committee would elect the chairman or<br /> other officers of any corporate association as a<br /> member of the Authors&#039; Society, to represent such<br /> association, on payment of 2 guineas per annum<br /> on behalf of such association. The chairman or<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 151 (#163) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> other officers thus elected would be entitled to all<br /> the benefits of the Society for the publications of<br /> the association and for advice with regard to the<br /> details of the body corporate, but not to advice on<br /> behalf of himself or any individual member of<br /> such association.&quot;<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I.—A Curious Question.<br /> APUBLISHER sells a large amount of<br /> books to a distributor or to a bookseller,<br /> and in the return of accounts to the<br /> author pays the author royalties on such books.<br /> At a later date, for some reason or other, the sale<br /> of the book ceases, and the wholesale distributor<br /> or bookseller asks the publisher whether he won&#039;t<br /> take the copies of the book back. It is some-<br /> times politic of the publisher to do so in the case<br /> of a large wholesale distributor who is very active<br /> in the sale of books, and he accordingly takes,<br /> say, 100 copies of the book back, although he is<br /> not legally bound to do so. The author has<br /> already been paid royalty on these copies, so he<br /> has no further claim. Ought the publisher, in<br /> the continued sales of the book, to sell the author&#039;s<br /> copies in priority to those that he has received<br /> back from the distributor?<br /> Opinions are invited on this point.<br /> 1. I do not think there is any legal point to be<br /> raised here. It is rather one of moral obligation.<br /> —O. H. Thring.<br /> 2. The books have been sold. The author is<br /> entitled to his royalty. They are taken back.<br /> Why? In the interests of the publisher, not of<br /> the author. My opinion is that the books<br /> returned cannot be sold again until all the others<br /> in the edition have been disposed of. When this<br /> has been done, the publisher can begin to sell<br /> again for his own advantage the books which have<br /> been returned.—W. B.<br /> II.—.&quot; The Battle of Dorking.&quot;<br /> &quot;Tbe year 1871 is known in the annals of the House of<br /> Blackwood as &#039;tbe &quot;Battle of Dorking&quot; jear.&#039; Colonel<br /> Chesney&#039;s brilliant jtu d&#039;esprit (as he himself called it) was<br /> probably the most successful magazine article ever written.<br /> It was reprinted in the form of a sixpenny pamphlet, of<br /> which over 80,000 copies were sold in a month, and more<br /> than 110,000 in all. Itappears from what Mrs. Porter says<br /> (though this is not absolutely clear) that the author&#039;s share<br /> of the profits when the sale had reached 80.000 was £250.<br /> If so, the Society of Authors ought to take no&#039;e of the fact,<br /> for supposing that the royalty on the issue was only 25 per<br /> cent.—an extremely moderate one, in view of such an<br /> enormous sale—the author&#039;s profits would be .£500, exactly<br /> twice what he appears to have received. If the £250 was<br /> a mere payment on account, this ought to be made clear;<br /> otherwise Messrs. Blackwood have published a serious<br /> reproach upon their own firm.&quot;<br /> The above is a note from the Daily Chronicle.<br /> If 80,000 copies of this little pamphlet, which<br /> cost perhaps i^d. a copy, or .£500, were sold, the<br /> proceeds were about .£1200, so that the profits<br /> were £700, of which perhaps .£50 went in adver-<br /> tising. These figures would show that the<br /> House of Blackwood pocketed eight thirteenths<br /> of the whole, giving the author five thirteenths.<br /> This would be quite in accordance with the<br /> common practice of that period and with the<br /> practice advocated by the present publishers in<br /> their draft agreements. I do not think that<br /> Blackwood was any worse than his neighbours.<br /> It must be remembered that the royalty methods<br /> had hardly yet been commenced: those writers, if<br /> any, who understood what was meant by &quot;trade<br /> price &quot; and &quot;cost of production,&quot; kept their know-<br /> ledge for their own benefit, and had no idea of<br /> helping other writers. I remember, some fifteen<br /> years ago, being assured by a publisher that a<br /> 10 per cent. royalty was a most fair arrangement,<br /> equitable for both parties. At that time I had<br /> some glimmerings of the truth, and I replied that<br /> it might be so for a small first edition, but it<br /> could not be so for larger and succeeding editions.<br /> Upon which his face assumed a pained look, with<br /> a touch of disappointment in it, such as is natural<br /> when one meets with want of confidence.<br /> I think, therefore, that it is very unlikely that<br /> any royalty was given in this case. If it was a<br /> royalty, it means 12\ per cent., which is con-<br /> temptible. It could not have been a half-profit<br /> arrangement, as it would seem to have been based<br /> upon imperfect accounts. I believe it was just a<br /> cheque tossed to the author without any account<br /> whatever. .<br /> III.—A Personal Experience.<br /> The Author has been very interesting of late<br /> on this subject. Perhaps my experience may be<br /> useful. I was anxious to publish, and to secure<br /> the profit while willing to take the risk. After<br /> four years&#039; reading of this valuable paper I had<br /> become educated. Mr. Thring gave me the<br /> names of five printing firms and a distributor (he<br /> has done nothing to deserve to be called a<br /> publisher), who read my MS. and expressed his<br /> willingness to publish for me. With his valu-<br /> able hints I obtained estimates for printing,<br /> interviewed papermakers, and gave my own<br /> orders. The same for binding. (I am not an<br /> idle man.) I paid cash and got discounts.<br /> Result, 120,000 words, 3000 copies—say all<br /> bound—£118, advertising extra, and typewriting.<br /> The book is well groomed, and the publisher<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 152 (#164) ############################################<br /> <br /> &gt;52<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> nowhere—not wanted. The woful condition of<br /> the bookseller is improved, as he gets much<br /> larger profits, and when more books are thus<br /> published he will be able to resume his former<br /> status and prosperity. He, too, was fearfully<br /> sweated by the publisher. He has my book on<br /> sale or return, and I have secured what seems a<br /> right—the right to place my book upon the<br /> market, that it may live or die according to the<br /> strength that is in it.<br /> For this I am indebted to the Society of<br /> Authors. I shall become a life member of the<br /> Society. It can do no more for me—it cannot<br /> command success.<br /> In the summer a literary friend wrote me that<br /> he had been over a castle now in the hands of a<br /> wealthy publisher, and said he thought he pre-<br /> ferred the robber baron. How long will the<br /> great ones of literature continue to lay this pub-<br /> lisher&#039;s golden eggs? My egg may be addled—<br /> they know theirs will not be. Yet I am no<br /> plutocrat, and the penniless may like to know<br /> that I have been penniless enough to satisfy the<br /> most exacting. Zeitgeist.<br /> IV.— Missing Music Hall Sketches.<br /> Judge Emden was engaged for several hours at<br /> the Lambeth County Court on Nov. 22 in hearing<br /> an action brought by Harry Williamson, play-<br /> wright, of Portland-place, Clapham-road, to<br /> recover from G. H. Macdermott, music hall artist<br /> and theatrical agent, carrying on business at<br /> Denison-street, York-road, .£50 damages for the<br /> loss of four music hall sketches entrusted to the<br /> defendant.<br /> The plaintiff deposed that he had been writing<br /> plays for the past eighteen or twenty years, and<br /> works of his had been produced at a number of<br /> West-end theatres. In February, 1897, he met<br /> the defendant at the Tivoli, and at his request<br /> subsequently left at his office the MSS. of four<br /> music hall sketches, entitled &quot;Killarnev,&quot;<br /> &quot;Mixed,&quot; &quot;Wanted,&quot; and &quot; Not Guilty,&quot; and &quot;he<br /> had not copies of any of these—only rough pencil<br /> notes. He warned the clerk of their value. When<br /> he subsequently applied for the return of the<br /> sketches, they could not be found. He had<br /> valued them at a low figure, so as to come within<br /> the jurisdiction of the County Court. He did not<br /> for a moment allege that Mr. Macdermott had<br /> the sketches. What he believed was that they<br /> had been stolen, and would be put on the market<br /> in another name. That was frequently done. For<br /> instance, he lost on board ship the original manu-<br /> script of &quot;Retiring,&quot; produced at the Folly<br /> Theatre, and when he sought to secure the Ameri-<br /> can rights he found that it had been brought out<br /> in the States as &quot; Out of Harness.&quot;<br /> Mr. Lionel Brough, asked by Mr. Lincoln Reid<br /> if he was an actor, replied, &quot;They say so.&quot;<br /> (Laughter.) He said he knew the plaintiff to<br /> hold a good position as a dramatic author and to<br /> have a considerable reputation in the theatrical<br /> world. The price he put upon the sketches was<br /> very moderate indeed.<br /> The defendant, Mr. Macdermott, said he had<br /> known the plaintiff for twenty-five years. He<br /> remembered that Williamson approached him on<br /> several occasions with regard to the sketches, and<br /> the witness told him to send them to his office, but<br /> he had never the smallest intention of charging<br /> any commission or fee of any kind if by a good<br /> word he could induce a manager or artist to<br /> accept them.<br /> The evidence of the defendant&#039;s manager and<br /> his clerk having been heard,<br /> Judge Emden, without calling upon the defen-<br /> dant&#039;s counsel, said there was no doubt in his<br /> mind that this was a case of gratuitous bailment<br /> —that is to say, that the defendant, in offering<br /> to read the manuscripts was not doing it for<br /> financial advantage, but as an act of friendship.<br /> That being so, and the plaintiff having failed to<br /> prove affirmatively that the documents were lost<br /> through negligence, there must be judgment for<br /> the defendant with costs. He could not help<br /> stating that Mr. Macdermott had given his<br /> evidence in a frank and candid manner, which<br /> was positively refreshing after the usual experi-<br /> ence of cases in that court.<br /> [This case, quoted in extetuo from the Daily<br /> Graphic of Nov. 23, is interesting to authors, as<br /> it bears to some extent on the position of an<br /> editor to whom MSS. are sent.]<br /> V.—Receipts.<br /> An article appeared in The Author some time<br /> ago with regard to a given form of receipt for the<br /> use of serial work which was issued by the<br /> Religious Tract Society, and which ran as<br /> follows:<br /> Copyright.<br /> This reoeipt conveys the copyright to the trustees of the<br /> Religions Traot Society, with liberty for them, at their dis-<br /> cretion, to republish in any form. Republication by authors<br /> on their own account must be the subject of special arrange-<br /> ment.<br /> There is no doubt that from time to time great<br /> difficulties arise owing to the form in which<br /> receipts are sent to authors. If the Religious<br /> Tract Society before publishing work in serial form<br /> made a special agreement with the author, con-<br /> veying the rights mentioned in the receipt, then<br /> there would be no objection to signing it when<br /> payment was made, but if no such agreement was<br /> made the contributor should refuse his signature,<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 153 (#165) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> *53<br /> or he should strike his pen through the objec-<br /> tionable words of conveyance. If the Religious<br /> Tract Society refused to pay without these words,<br /> he should then, unless his necessities compelled<br /> him to endure anything, place the business in the<br /> hands of the Secretary of the Authors&#039; Society.<br /> If no contract had been made before the publi-<br /> cation in serial form, taking the worst view of the<br /> case, it would have fallen under the 18th section<br /> of the Act, which is the section which deals with<br /> copyright in magazines. Under this section the<br /> right of republication in separate form would not<br /> lie with the Religious Tract Society, but would be<br /> a matter of separate agreement between the author<br /> and the proprietor of the magazine during the period<br /> prescribed by law of twenty-eight years, when the<br /> right to publish separately would revert to the<br /> author.<br /> This would be the position of the author,<br /> taking the most disadvantageous view of the<br /> difficulty, for the 18th section runs as follows in<br /> brief: &quot;That when any publisher of a magazine<br /> shall have employed or shall employ any persons<br /> to compose any parts, essays, articles, or portions<br /> thereof for publication in or as part of the<br /> same, and such parts, essays, articles, or portions<br /> thereof shall have been or shall hereafter be com-<br /> posed under such employment on the terms that<br /> the copyright therein shall belong to such pro-<br /> prietor, and be paid for by such proprietor, then<br /> the copyright shall belong to the proprietor,&quot;<br /> with the proviso stated above, that he cannot re-<br /> publish the same separately without the sanction<br /> of the author for twenty-eight years.<br /> It is very probable, however, that the article<br /> may be sent up to the magazine, and there<br /> may be no evidence whatever of employment<br /> by the proprietor of the magazine on the<br /> terms above stated. In that case the copy-<br /> right would belong to the author, and the<br /> right that he has sold to the magazine would<br /> be serial publication in that magazine only. It<br /> would therefore be absolutely unfair to ask the<br /> author after the publication of his article to<br /> assign the copyright and the right to republish<br /> in any form when nothing had been stated with<br /> regard to these rights previously to the publica-<br /> tion. It should be pointed out that, in the<br /> absence of special agreement, the contract is com-<br /> pleted with the publication, and that the signing<br /> of a receipt in the form set forth above would not<br /> necessarily convey the copyright, as there would<br /> be no fresh consideration for such conveyance,<br /> but it might be such very strong evidence of the<br /> intention of the author that it would be impos-<br /> sible to dispute his position subsequently.<br /> This article was commenced not with the idea<br /> of bringing forward the old form of receipt of the<br /> R. T. S., but with the intention of putting authors<br /> very strongly on their guard against endorsing<br /> cheques which have got a form of receipt on<br /> somewhat of the same lines, as the one above<br /> quoted, printed on their backs. It is easy to<br /> strike out the words of the receipt quoted above,<br /> and to return it to the office, taking the cheque in<br /> payment of fair serial use of an author&#039;s work.<br /> The author thus obtains his fair remuneration,<br /> and if the proprietor likes to dispute the price<br /> the action must lie with him. Here, again, the<br /> Society might be of use. But the proprietors of<br /> several magazines have devised the method of<br /> printing the receipt on the back of the cheque,<br /> and giving orders to their bank not to cash<br /> the cheque under any circumstances unless it is<br /> endorsed with the name of the author at the<br /> bottom of the receipt—conveying all these extra<br /> rights—and the receipt has no deletions upon it.<br /> Here the author is met with a considerable diffi-<br /> culty, as he cannot get his money until he has<br /> endorsed the cheque, and he cannot endorse the<br /> cheque without practically handing over to the<br /> proprietor the copyright and other rights that<br /> were never bargained for, In this case the author<br /> must return the cheque, and the cause of action<br /> lies with the author. Is it possible that the pro-<br /> prietor relies on the reluctance of the author to go<br /> to law?<br /> It is necessary again to repeat that the difficulty<br /> only arises when no agreement whatever has been<br /> made before the publication of the work. How<br /> then should an author avoid this difficulty? As<br /> a matter of fact, an editor, if he desires to accept<br /> an article, should write to the author and state so,<br /> mentioning at the same time what rights he<br /> desires to purchase and the price he is willing to<br /> give; but editors are not perfect, and under<br /> certain circumstances such a course might be<br /> impossible. In practice there are a great many<br /> things published without any formal acceptance<br /> from the editor, and an awkward position is the<br /> result. It is possible, however, for the author,<br /> from his point of view, to prevent himself from<br /> falling into the trap by forwarding his work with<br /> a letter stating exactly the rights he desires to<br /> convey if the work is published in the magazine,<br /> and the price he asks for such rights. He might<br /> have a stereotyped letter in this form, and he<br /> should keep a copy of the same. If, then, his<br /> work is subsequently published, and he receives<br /> no notice until after the publication, then it<br /> would be published, failing any evidence to the<br /> contrary, on the terms of the author&#039;s letter.<br /> These points have been put forward many times<br /> in The Author, and have been embodied in the<br /> &quot;Addenda to the Methods of Publishing,&quot; but it<br /> is thought worth while to repeat the warnings, as<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 154 (#166) ############################################<br /> <br /> i54<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> the process of issuing cheques with the receipts<br /> indorsed purporting to convey the copyright,<br /> when no previous agreement has been made, is as<br /> unfair to the author as it is unjust on the part of<br /> the proprietor. . G-. H. Thring.<br /> VI.—A Point or International Law.<br /> The following was the first resolution passed at<br /> the International Literary and Artistic Confer-<br /> ence, which was held at Turin this year. It<br /> refers to the retrospective action of the Berne<br /> Convention, and to modifications which the con-<br /> ference desired to see made in the English law.<br /> The CoDgross considering that the English law respecting<br /> International Copyright is not completely in accord with the<br /> text of the Berne Convention (and more especially that the<br /> Article 6 of the English Law of the 25 th June, 1886, as it is<br /> legally interpreted, contradicts the principle laid down in<br /> Artiole 14 of the Convention of Berne, and leads to violent<br /> and numerous violations of the rights of authors and artists),<br /> expresses the hope that diplomatic steps may be taken with<br /> the Government of Great Britain so that a new text of the<br /> law in question may be placed in complete acoord with the<br /> text of the Convention of Berne, and may especially assure<br /> the application of the principle of Article 14 of that<br /> Convention; that is to say, the effective protection of a<br /> work which has not fallen into the public domain in the<br /> country of its origin, and this even against the publisher<br /> who may, before that date, have published in England<br /> without the consent of the author.<br /> The question here put forward seems on the<br /> whole to be unnecessary, The section of the<br /> International and Colonial Copyright Act of 1886<br /> referred to, runs as follows:—<br /> Where an Order in Council is made under the interna-<br /> tional Copyright Acts with respect to any foreign country,<br /> the author and publisher of any literary or artistic work<br /> first produced before the date at which such order comes<br /> into operation shall be entitled to the same rights and<br /> remedies as if the said Aots and this Act and the said<br /> order had applied to the said foreign country at the date of<br /> the said production. Provided that where any person has<br /> before the date of the publication of an Order in Council law-<br /> fully produced any work in the United Kingdom, nothing in<br /> this section shall diminish or prejudice any rights or interests<br /> arising from or in connection with such productions which<br /> are subsisting and valuable at the said date.<br /> The section of the Berne Convention referred to<br /> runs:—<br /> Under the reserves and conditions to be determined by<br /> common agreement, the present Convention applies to all<br /> works which at the moment of its coming into force have<br /> not yet fallen into the public domain in the country of<br /> origin.<br /> It is difficult to see what the Congress can<br /> possibly have meant by passing this resolution,<br /> and stating that the opposition in principle leads<br /> to violent and numerous violations of rights of<br /> authors and artists. Firstly, it is exceedingly<br /> doubtful if there is any opposition in principle,<br /> as the Congress would have discovered if it had<br /> thought fit to consider paragraph 4 of the final<br /> protocol to the Convention ;* and, secondly, the<br /> only rights that can possibly come into question<br /> would be the rights that publishers had acquired<br /> before the passing of the International and<br /> Colonial Att of 1886.<br /> At the most there have been two or three cases<br /> in the English courts referring to the rights of<br /> publishers in England acquired before the passing<br /> of the Act, touching works that come within the<br /> region of the retrospective working of the 14th<br /> section of the Berne Convention. How far the<br /> 14th section of the Berne Convention is retro-<br /> spective, and what are the limits of that retro-<br /> spection, have never been really decided, but<br /> there is no doubt that any rights obtained before<br /> the passing of the International Copyright Act,<br /> which confirmed the Berne Convention, must have<br /> been ot* so small a character as hardly in any way<br /> to affect authors and artists; otherwise action*<br /> would have been more frequent and the matter<br /> would have been discussed and settled long<br /> ago.<br /> Further, as regards authors, the rights that are<br /> of most value—translation rights—even if ob-<br /> tained under the Convention, lasted only ten years,<br /> and have now fallen into the public domain. In<br /> addition to this, every year makes it more im-<br /> possible for other rights to be of any value owing<br /> to the period of protection given expiring by lapse<br /> of time.<br /> The resolution which has been passed appears,<br /> to anyone who has really studied the two articles<br /> side by side, and the reading of the International<br /> Law, to be entirely futile and unnecessary. The<br /> Congress might, however, with much more advan-<br /> tage have turned its attention to the fact that the<br /> acquiring of copyright in a dramatic piece by<br /> performance in England prevents the English law<br /> from being in accord with the laws of most of the<br /> other countries that are signatories to the Berne<br /> Convention.<br /> This is a grave point, as it is a continuing<br /> cause of disintegration. The other point was never<br /> of much import, and grows less and less important<br /> every day. Q Herbert Thring.<br /> VII.—Author and Publisher.<br /> Most of your readers will endorse the opinions<br /> expressed by &quot; A Member &quot; in your last issue, as<br /> well as your own comments on the same. You<br /> seem, however, to think that the Society as yet<br /> might not wish to undertake the publication of<br /> books on the lines laid down by your corre-<br /> spondent.<br /> * This opinion is supported by a legal expert on Inter,<br /> national Copyright Law.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 155 (#167) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &#039;55<br /> But if a powerful concern were established,<br /> publishing on commission only, as you suggest, a<br /> great step would be gained. In order to secure<br /> the success of such an undertaking it would<br /> require the steadfast patronage of the more<br /> influential members of the Society. Some of your<br /> readers may remember that a small company,<br /> called The Authors&#039; Co-operative Publishing<br /> Company, was started some eight or ten years<br /> ago on these lines; but, as it possessed the<br /> patronage of neither the Authors&#039; Society nor of<br /> its principal members, the company almost died<br /> before it was born. There is no doubt that a<br /> certain proportion of the more mercenary critics<br /> are considerably under the influence of pub-<br /> lishers, and that unknown writers are more or<br /> less at the mercy of these mercenary critics. As,<br /> at first, books published by such a firm would<br /> probably have to stand the attacks of these light-<br /> fingered gentry, the concern would require the<br /> continued support of writers of established repu-<br /> tation, who could afford to sneer at unfair reviews.<br /> A surreptitious attempt would certainly be made<br /> by publishers and their creatures to boycott their<br /> rivals; but perseverance would prevail, and the<br /> public would gradually come to learn that the<br /> great difference of such a firm from the ordinary<br /> publisher would be that the works would be pro-<br /> duced cheaper, and that the profits would go<br /> more into the pockets of the poor author and<br /> bookseller than into the coffers of dishonest pub-<br /> lishers. The present relations between author<br /> and publisher are so entirely one-sided as to be<br /> truly ridiculous to contemplate. &quot;You give me<br /> your book,&quot; says the publisher to the author,<br /> &quot;and you see nothin&#039;, and you ask nothin&#039;, except<br /> what I may be jolly well pleased to give you, for<br /> I am the immaculate Llama of Literature.&quot; Till<br /> such links of bondage are broken the author<br /> remains a slave. There would be something more<br /> to say on the subject, and distribution of per-<br /> centages, in promoting such a concern.<br /> Glenfktjin.<br /> FEOM THE SUNNY SOUTH.<br /> PERHAPS a few lines—not entirely about<br /> books—from Australia may be of some<br /> interest to readers of The Author.<br /> A literary man in Sydney is not quite in the<br /> back blocks, indeed, less so than if he were in<br /> (say) Manchester, for the place is cosmopolitan<br /> in character: the terminal port for three or four<br /> English bines, one German, one French, one<br /> American, and one Canadian line of mail<br /> steamers; is the centre of government for a<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> million and a quarter of people, the headquarters<br /> of the British fleet in Australian waters, and a<br /> few other things besides. The city is fairly large,<br /> contaiuing as it does a population of 410,000<br /> souls, is well-built, furnished with railways,<br /> electric trams, telephones, and all the other aids<br /> to the business of the nerve specialist, possesses<br /> many theatres, good libraries, and an art gallery<br /> which competent critics declare to be very credit-<br /> able for so young a city. The natural advantages<br /> of the place constitute its chief charm however,<br /> for in the whole world there is not so splendid a<br /> site for a city. Sydney harbour, with its 200 odd<br /> miles of coast line, its numerous arms, bays, and<br /> inlets, its surroundings of bush-clad slopes and<br /> craggy gullies, is indeed a vision of beauty, but<br /> a very real &quot;vision,&quot; which can be engaged any<br /> day for a few pence. Then the harbour is not<br /> the only attraction, for there are miles of open<br /> coast close by the city, and countless pretty<br /> drives.<br /> Intellectually it is, perhaps, as yet a trifle pro-<br /> vincial, and frozen meat and gold mines bulk<br /> rather too largely, but there is an improvement<br /> in this respect. One or two of the dailies pose as<br /> being quite abreast of modern thought (which<br /> they are not), and all kinds of ideas are discussed<br /> freely and without much prejudice. People here<br /> have passed out of the materialistic stage in con-<br /> nection with the religious question, and have<br /> either swung right back to some form of Chris-<br /> tianity or adopted some form of Deism. One or<br /> two leading ministers of various denominations<br /> have no hesitation in announcing themselves<br /> evolutionists, and yet adherents of revealed<br /> religion.<br /> It is a tolerant place, people are not very preju-<br /> diced, and divorce is made more easy than in any<br /> portion of the British empire, without the remotest<br /> sign of the degradation prophesied at every stage<br /> of advance in this direction.<br /> Literature can hardly be said to have had a<br /> beginning in Australia as yet—at all events a<br /> purely literary career is not yet possible here<br /> unless the worker takes his wares to the London<br /> market. Only one firm as yet publishes locally,<br /> and there is no literary magazine. An attempt<br /> to form an association of Australian authors and<br /> produce a paper in which Australian work could<br /> appear was not successful.<br /> The firm which publishes (and prints) in Sydney<br /> has had several successes, principally with poems<br /> and ballads, but the market for local work—<br /> especially fiction—cannot be said to be strong.<br /> English works have a ready sale, but it is notice-<br /> able that many of the works which have achieved<br /> success in London do not catch on here. That<br /> fact was very noticeable last year, when some of<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 156 (#168) ############################################<br /> <br /> &gt;5&lt;5<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> the &quot; spooky&quot; books which sold freely in London<br /> were scarcely asked for here.<br /> Justin C. MacCartie.<br /> Bridge-street, Sydney,<br /> Aug. 20.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> CONFIRMATION has reached me of my<br /> estimate as to the number of families in<br /> this country who can be considered as<br /> possible buyers of books. I put the number at<br /> 400,000, and the lowest income at .£250. People<br /> with less than that income may buy a cheap book,<br /> one at 4f&lt;/. in a draper&#039;s shop, or a second-hand<br /> book, out of the twopenny box, but they certainly<br /> cannot afford to buy new and expensive books.<br /> Indeed, book-buying only begins when the<br /> standard of comfort is reached. I do not myself<br /> believe that many families with incomes under<br /> .£750 a year spend much upon books, especially<br /> when the children are receiving their education.<br /> When there are no children: when a man is<br /> unmarried, he can buy a good many books with<br /> an income of .£250. However, my confirmation is<br /> based upon Mr. Charles Booth&#039;s Analysis of the<br /> 1891 Census. From that analysis it is made out<br /> that the number of families in London with such<br /> an income is 65,000, and that for the whole<br /> country in the same proportion it would be<br /> 480,000. But as the proportion of rich to poor<br /> is much less in the country than in London, it is<br /> safer to take 400,000. So far, this is satisfactory.<br /> But, in addition, I should like to know how many<br /> families have an income of .£750 and over,<br /> because I should be inclined to limit book-buying<br /> to any considerable extent to those families.<br /> &quot;What has your Society done? Not a single<br /> publisher driven to smash yet!&quot; This objection<br /> was seriously advanced the other day to the Secre-<br /> tary. One hardly knows how to reply. The<br /> Society has never tried to &quot;smash&quot; publishers.<br /> It is not one of the objects of the Society to<br /> &quot;smash&quot; publishers any more than printers,<br /> paper-makers, or bookbinders. The object of the<br /> Society is solely to defend literary property in the<br /> interests of the author, to whom it belongs. How<br /> has the Society sought to effect this object?<br /> Partly by jireparing an amended Copyright Bill:<br /> partly by putting the law at the service of authors:<br /> mainly by ascertaining and publishing the facts<br /> and statistics concerning literary property. For<br /> instance, the cost of printing, paper, and bind-<br /> ing: the meaning of advertisements: the trade<br /> price of various books—so that the creator of<br /> literary property may understand exactly what,<br /> under given conditions, ought to come to him as<br /> the owner, and what, under the same conditions,<br /> is demanded by the middleman. This seems a<br /> tolerably useful thing to do. It may even be called<br /> a humble piece of work. But it had never been<br /> done before; and the want of this knowledge<br /> kept the writer in a condition of helpless and<br /> galliug dependence. He could not object, what-<br /> ever was offered, because he did not know. Now<br /> he does know.<br /> What is the result? It is, beyond all doubt, an<br /> advance all along the line. The old royalties are<br /> no longer offered: the old prices are no longer<br /> proposed. It is certain that for popular work of<br /> all kinds the position of the author is increased<br /> enormously in consequence of the Society&#039;s action.<br /> There are persons who to-day enjoy the fruits of<br /> the Society&#039;s labours, and neither join it nor<br /> acknowledge their obligation—and even attempt to<br /> abuse and misrepresent the Society. &quot;You have<br /> not yet, after all your work, driven a single pub-<br /> lisher to smash!&quot;<br /> We might sit down, then, these results dis-<br /> covered and published. Not so: they must be<br /> republished again and again. We must keep<br /> before the eyes of writers the facts and the figures.<br /> We must show them again and again the cost<br /> of production: the meaning of advertisements:<br /> the meaning of risk, the meaning of royalties,<br /> and the tricks, dodges, and devices by which<br /> the author is met at every turn by the greater<br /> number of publishers.<br /> And there is another side. It is that the<br /> Society acts as a police, always on the lookout:<br /> preventing iniquities and detecting iniquities.<br /> Every week brings in &quot;cases&quot; for investigation.<br /> The work is necessarily confidential. Only the<br /> Chairman and the Secretary know the full work<br /> that is done by the Society in this way. The<br /> cases are not, as a rule, brought before the Com-<br /> mittee. I do not say that the complainant is<br /> always right. Perhaps he may be wrong: in this<br /> case it is well that he should learn the law and<br /> the equity of his own case, and should cease to<br /> accuse. _<br /> A point about the &quot;Draft Agreements&quot; of the<br /> Publishers&#039; Association has not, I think, been<br /> noted. It is this. Up to the present it has been<br /> the custom with a great many to overstate every<br /> item. They could do this with impunity because<br /> there was no audit. But no provision has been<br /> made in the &quot;Draft Agreements&quot; for any audit.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 157 (#169) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> •57<br /> Therefore the same impunity remains. But they<br /> do propose to put a percentage on everything—a<br /> percentage of what they please. Therefore, if<br /> these agreements are carried out, we shall soon<br /> have (i) the items all overstated as before, and<br /> (2) a percentage charged on the fraudulent<br /> return. This, it appears, is not only possible, but<br /> certain to be done. For those who have always<br /> practised the old knavish custom of overstating<br /> the cost, will continue to do so with impunity,<br /> and will then cheerfully make use of the liberty<br /> claimed by the Association of adding on what<br /> they please as a percentage.<br /> Let us apply these considerations to a half-<br /> profit system.<br /> We take a book which costs .£150 for an<br /> edition of 3000 copies. We suppose all to be sold,<br /> less Press copies, i.e., 2950 copies at 3.?. 6d. each.<br /> Here is the honest return:—<br /> Cost of production .£150 0 0<br /> Author&#039;s share 183 2 6<br /> Publisher&#039;s share... 183 2 6<br /> — - .£516 5 0<br /> Sales—2950 at 3s. 6d .£516 5 0<br /> Next, the return partly based on the old<br /> iniquity and partly as maintained by the Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association.<br /> Cost of production fraudulently set down as<br /> .£200.<br /> Eeturns &quot;at customary trade price,&quot; i.e., at<br /> anything the publisher chooses to say. Perhaps<br /> he will own to 3*. a copy, or .£442 i0.«. Also,<br /> though the returns are for actual money received,<br /> he deducts a percentage for bad debts.<br /> He adds, besides his percentages (which are<br /> allowed here by the agreement), a charge for<br /> advertisements not paid for. This he can also do<br /> with impunity.<br /> We now have the account as rendered :—<br /> Cost of production .£200 0 0<br /> Percentage: 15 per<br /> cent 30 0 0<br /> Advertisements not<br /> paid for 30 0 0<br /> 260 0 0<br /> Author&#039;s share 47 0 0<br /> Publisher&#039;s share... 47 0 0<br /> .£354 0 0<br /> Returns £442 10 0<br /> Less 10 per<br /> cent. bad<br /> debts ... .£44 5 0<br /> Less 10 per<br /> cent. office<br /> expenses.. .£44 50 88100<br /> .£354 0 0<br /> But observe that the publisher has got—<br /> I.<br /> .£50<br /> 0<br /> 0<br /> 2.<br /> Percentage on<br /> alleged cost ...<br /> 30<br /> 0<br /> 0<br /> 3-<br /> Advertisements<br /> not paid for ..<br /> 30<br /> 0<br /> 0<br /> 4-<br /> Bad debts<br /> 44<br /> 10<br /> 0<br /> 5-<br /> Office expenses ...<br /> 44<br /> 10<br /> 0<br /> 6.<br /> Alleged share of<br /> profits<br /> 47<br /> □<br /> 0<br /> .£246 0 0<br /> To the author&#039;s .£47.<br /> And this is an alleged half-profit system!<br /> I desire readers to mark very earnestly and<br /> seriously the dangers which these draft agree-<br /> ments threaten. If they are successful, then there<br /> will be an end of literature. It cannot be too often<br /> repeated that literature, like any other art, must<br /> be free: must be respected: must be indepen-<br /> dent. No profession can continue in respect<br /> which is daily wilfully robbed, and without any<br /> power of redress. It may be argued that the very<br /> publishers who advance these pretensions would<br /> not dare to offer such an agreement to a writer of<br /> repute. This shows the inherent dishonesty of<br /> the proposals. They know that such an agree-<br /> ment would be flung in their faces. Why, then,<br /> are these drafts put forward? In the hope that<br /> they may be little by little put forward and<br /> adopted with the writers who are helpless, or<br /> with those who desire above all things to get<br /> their books published, and that so, in the imme-<br /> diate future, they may be recognised by writers<br /> of standing. The scheme is crafty. It is based<br /> on the ignorance and artlessness of writers,<br /> which have been abundantly proved in the past.<br /> We shall see what writers will do.<br /> A writer in a daily paper informs the world<br /> about Mr. Rudyard Kipling&#039;s private affairs. I<br /> shall not follow his example, because I have not<br /> received information from the only person who<br /> knows these things—the author himself: nor<br /> have I received his permission to publish the facts.<br /> But the paragraph concludes with these words:<br /> &quot;This pecuniary return seems adequate.&quot;<br /> What is the meaning of &quot; adequate &quot;? It is<br /> the old, old story of confusing literary and com-<br /> mercial value. Nothing is &quot;adequate&quot; for a<br /> writer, and nothing is &quot;inadequate,&quot; because<br /> there is no connection possible between the two<br /> values. But put it in another way. This writer<br /> has created a literary property. It is his, as<br /> much as a house, or a terrace, or a farm, or a<br /> hundred farms. The returns from that pro-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 158 (#170) ############################################<br /> <br /> ■58<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> perty are his own: if he did not get them, some<br /> person who had no right or claim whatever to<br /> them would lay hands upon them. I have never<br /> heard of anyone in the paper calling out upon<br /> the amount realised by that person, but I con-<br /> stantly see little touches like this use of the word<br /> &quot;adequate,&quot; which show the confusion I have<br /> often indicated, together with a kind of feeling<br /> that an author ought not to be allowed the use<br /> and the returns of his own property. Every<br /> other kind of property the owner may be allowed<br /> to enjoy to the full, but not literary property—<br /> no—not literary property. Tbat, it appears, does<br /> not belong to the creator and the owner.<br /> This confusion cannot be too often pointed out<br /> and insisted upon. There is no connection what-<br /> ever between literary and commercial value.<br /> They are incommensurable as much as the circle<br /> and the radius. It is impossible to say that this<br /> poem is worth a million or that essay a shilling.<br /> &quot;When a worthless book is for a time successful,<br /> people should cry out—not at the money which it<br /> brings in, but at the bad taste of those who buy<br /> it. In the same way a good book may have a<br /> very limited circulation—witness, for a long time,<br /> Browning&#039;s poems, and, now as always, Walter<br /> Pater&#039;s works. Circulation, that is, money, does<br /> not make a book good or bad. On the other<br /> hand, there are, happily, many cases every year<br /> in which good work is largely recognised. Even if<br /> all good books were recognised, that would bring<br /> us no nearer to the establishment of an equation<br /> between the two separate factors of poetry and<br /> trade. Nothing, however, was more common a<br /> few years ago than to find the reviewers talking<br /> about certain sums of money being &quot;more &quot; or<br /> &quot;less&quot; than a book was &quot;worth.&quot; The expres-<br /> sion, which they did not understand, stamped<br /> them with the mark of ignorance as to the entirely<br /> separate character of literary worth. Of late<br /> one has heard less of the expression Yet the<br /> above example shows that it still lingers.<br /> (From the Book News and Trade Gazette,<br /> Oct. 2 2, 1898.)<br /> &quot;Unfortunately for the bookseller, tbe same manner of<br /> carrying on business prevails to-day in tbe publishing trade<br /> as it did in the early days of the century, when fewer books<br /> were issued and a greater discrimination was shown in<br /> selection of MSS. for publication. In those days publishing<br /> and bookselling were a profession where the publisher and<br /> bookseller pursued their work more from a genuine love for<br /> it than in a commercial spirit. To-day that is all changed;<br /> the publisher in the majority of oases never reads a MS.<br /> before it is published, relying entirely on his expert readers.<br /> The bookseller, harassed by the competition of the libraries,<br /> has no time to grasp the inside of the books and thereby in-<br /> telligently sell his wares to the public. He has to buy his<br /> ■took chiefly on the representation or misrepresentation of<br /> the publisher-traveller, a creature whose conscience has<br /> deteriorated, or in some cases disappeared, through stress of<br /> ciroumstances and struggle for existence. Through him the<br /> publisher vicariously leads the bookseller astray. This un-<br /> businesslike system, based on a rotten foundation, is gradu-<br /> ally ruining the bookselling trade. Even the trade have<br /> awakened to that fact, but unfortunately they have not been<br /> able to accurately diagnose the malady which is killing<br /> them. Instead of coming to some simple basis of<br /> agreement, and presenting a firm front to the enemy,<br /> they actually invite those who are trying to ruin them to<br /> devise some means whereby the end may be quickened, and<br /> the result of their concentrated wisdom was to try and<br /> institute a system which would still further alienate the<br /> publio from buying books. This fell through, and though<br /> some more futile propositions were put forward, nothing<br /> apparently has come of them, and the survival of the fittest<br /> will probably be the only solution to tbe question.<br /> &quot;We set forth again the only remedy that, in our opinion,<br /> will at least save the trade, and especially the country book-<br /> seller, from accumulating bad stock, the great cause of ruin<br /> to many. The Booksellers&#039; Association should approach<br /> the publishers and get them to send a copy of every book to<br /> them a fortnight before publication. They should then<br /> appoint an expert who would read every book and write a<br /> short resume, if suitable, which would be issued to the<br /> trade. The bookseller would then, when the book was pre-<br /> sented to him for subscription, be able to know whether it<br /> would suit his particular trade, and buy in such a way as<br /> to reduce the item of bad stock to a minimum. This seems<br /> to us the only intelligent way of doing business. Other<br /> trades guard themselves in the same way, and the book-<br /> sellers would only be doing a wise thing if they followed<br /> their example. The retrograde step proposed last year—<br /> namely, to raise tbe price of a commodity which is essential<br /> for the welfare of tbe country, was perhaps the silliest pro-<br /> position ever put forward by business men. We maintain<br /> that everyone would be benefited by our proposal—the pub-<br /> lisher, the bookseller, and the public. Though at first sales<br /> might not increase, losses would be diminished, and in the<br /> end renewed confidence in the superior quality of the wares<br /> would encourage the publio to buy.&quot;<br /> The above proposal is at once practical and<br /> sensible, and certain to produce the best results.<br /> I had myself, before this article appeared, advo-<br /> cated exactly the same method: but with certain<br /> modifications. Thus it would not be possible for<br /> an expert to read and report on every book. But<br /> he might do this: There are many books which<br /> a bookseller would desire to offer his people on<br /> the recommendation of the name only. There<br /> are many books which can be condemned almost<br /> at a glance. There remain the books on the<br /> border line which require to be considered before<br /> they are recommended or condemned. This<br /> expert with the weekly sheet of recommendations<br /> or descriptions — a brief description should<br /> accompany every recommendation—would cost<br /> ab,/ut .£400 a year, or a yearly subscription of, say,<br /> 15*. Surely this is not too much, considering the<br /> advantages to be gained by this method. But I<br /> am always of opinion that the sale-or-return<br /> method is the only way of getting books really<br /> published, i.e., produced and offered for sale.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 159 (#171) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &#039;59<br /> And as no bookseller&#039;s shop can hold all the books<br /> that are produced, this reader would guide him as<br /> to the books he would accept on sale-or-return.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> &quot;A SPRAY OF LILAC.&quot;<br /> (From an unpublished book of words for music.)<br /> &quot;No tender stalk of juicy green<br /> Is mine,&quot; it murmured low;<br /> &quot;No feathered leaf, nor drooping branch<br /> It is, that lilacs know.&quot;<br /> &quot;But lovely shades of violet,<br /> And snowy white are mine,<br /> In dusters fair, and greeny leaves<br /> A-near each branch entwine.&quot;<br /> &quot;There is no flow&#039;r more sweet to see,<br /> No flow&#039;r so scents the gale,<br /> No bridal wreath it does not deck,<br /> In semblance, &#039;neath the veil.&quot;<br /> &quot;And one sweet spray I place on this,<br /> Thy last lone resting place;<br /> And as I gaze, and tears arise,<br /> I see thy sad pale face.&quot;<br /> Thus spoke he, as he paused to view<br /> Her grave where she had lain<br /> Full twenty years, while lilacs bloom&#039;d,<br /> And went and came again.<br /> M. A. C. C.<br /> [Copyright.]<br /> CHALONER&#039;S MASTERPIECE.<br /> WHEN he was eight years old John Fyvie<br /> Chaloner ran away to sea. At least, he<br /> partly ran and partly walked to the side<br /> of the canal-dock which lay three-quarters of a<br /> mile distant from his home. Here he saw a<br /> burly man lounging on a barge, and after a little<br /> hesitation offered 6d. as the price of a passage to<br /> &quot;the big London docks.&quot; The man asked ques-<br /> tions in a good-humoured way, and little John<br /> revealed his purpose. He feared it was unwise to<br /> do so, but what was he to say? Among other<br /> matters he told the bargee where Mr. Chaloner<br /> senior lived.<br /> &quot;Here, you come along with me,&quot; said the<br /> bargee when John had made an end of his tale.<br /> &quot;1 know of a tremendous fine sea-going steamer,<br /> I *lo, and I know the captain of her, and you&#039;ll<br /> see if it isn&#039;t just what you&#039;re a-looking after.&quot;<br /> John consented, round-eyed, and the bargee<br /> jumped ashore. Then he grasped John by the<br /> hand and led him by a circuitous route to the<br /> house of Mr. Chnloner senior. John was told to<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> go upstairs and wait till his father came to him,<br /> and the bargee was handsomely rewarded.<br /> When John was fourteen his father died, and<br /> a year later his mother married again. Then<br /> John ran away to sea once more. He was a<br /> strong, smart lad now with a pleasant address,<br /> and he got his way this time. The life fascinated<br /> him even after he had learned to hate it, and he<br /> remained at sea six years. Then he suddenly<br /> grew tired of the water, and began to think of<br /> falling seriously in love and renting a cottage.<br /> He came ashore, and tried to earn his living in<br /> London. He did manage to escape starvation.<br /> He was alternately a dock labourer, check-taker<br /> at the pit-door of a theatre, sandwich-man,<br /> stage carpenter&#039;s hand, walking gentleman, and<br /> attendant to a lunatic. It was during the leisure<br /> which he sometimes enjoyed in this latter service<br /> that he found time to write a book. It was a<br /> novel, of course, and it was a curious one.<br /> Round a plot of which he had thought during<br /> his very first voyage he spread a jumble of his<br /> experiences, and the book was very sensational in<br /> some places and very funny in other places, and<br /> it was long and somewhat formless; but it was<br /> alive. Twelve publishing firms rejected it within<br /> six months, and then John Chaloner begau to<br /> think that he was not cut out for a novelist.<br /> &quot;The jury&#039;s dead against me,&quot; he said. &quot;Well,<br /> what will be will be. Let&#039;s try the thirteenth<br /> man, and see if he&#039;s as bad as his number.&quot;<br /> After two months John received a brief letter<br /> from Messrs. Beaner and Baske—the thirteenth<br /> firm. They were prepared to offer him £20 for<br /> the copyright of his novel, provided they had the<br /> option of publishing his next long work, &quot; such<br /> work not to take the form of a collection of short<br /> stories.&quot;<br /> John sat for some time dangling the letter<br /> between his fingers. He knew nothing of pub-<br /> lishers and nothing of the prices paid for books.<br /> True, it was a long while since he had handled<br /> £20 in a single sum, but the terms offered to him<br /> appeared small for so much work. He wrote to<br /> Messrs. Beaner and Baske and asked if they<br /> could not be a little more generous. They replied<br /> that they could not—in this instance. They<br /> enclosed a form of transfer of copyright, which<br /> John signed, and by return of post he received a<br /> cheque for £20.<br /> The book attracted a great deal of attention;<br /> it was not only sensational and funny, it was<br /> true. The sales were brisk; twelve thousand<br /> copies went off in two months, and the publishers<br /> made a very neat thing of selling sheets to an<br /> American firm; besides, they sold a big colonial<br /> edition, and they sold the continental rights to<br /> Tauchnitz, and they sold the story as a serial to<br /> B<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 160 (#172) ############################################<br /> <br /> i6o<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> a number of more or leas obscure newspapers,<br /> which all paid something. So both Beaner and<br /> Baske rubbed their hands over that book. But<br /> John Chaloner knew exactly how far .£20 would<br /> go, and he continued to attend upon the lunatic.<br /> There was a reason why the book was true, and<br /> the reason was that John Chaloner respected<br /> himself when he sat down to write. He had<br /> strong views about the dignity of authorship.<br /> So when he found that his first venture was<br /> successful he set himself to write the very best<br /> book he could think of. It was a long book,<br /> rather gloomy and very powerful. John knew<br /> all the people who were to live in it before he<br /> began to write it, and the people actually lived in<br /> it when he had done.<br /> Beaner and Baske told him that they did not<br /> like the book, but John assured them it was better<br /> than his last. Mr. Baske shook his head. &quot;We<br /> will hope it may prove so,&quot; said Mr. Beaner, with<br /> a sour smile. John was I o receive a royalty upon<br /> every copy of this book which was sold in<br /> England—nothing was said about America; and<br /> Mr. Beaner and Mr. Baske both assured the<br /> author that the royalty was a very handsome one,<br /> and that the treatment which he was receiving<br /> was very handsome altogether. The book was<br /> published, and the Press notices of it turned John<br /> Chaloner&#039;s head slightly; at least, they made him<br /> think that he had carved out a road to com-<br /> petence and freedom, and he gave up attending<br /> on his lunatic. That was three weeks after the<br /> book was published. Then came the eternal<br /> bread-and-butter question, and John called on his<br /> publishers. Mr. Beaner advanced him .£20 with<br /> a pleasant smile, and said it would be &quot;all right.&quot;<br /> John began to take his pleasure a little, and<br /> within three weeks the twenty pounds had been<br /> spent. Then John Chaloner called upon his pub-<br /> lishers again. Mr. Beaner was not so agreeable,<br /> talked vaguely of the book not quite answering<br /> expectations, and, when he advanced John the<br /> fifty pounds for which he had asked, requested<br /> him not only to sign a receipt, but a formal<br /> promise that the firm should have &quot;the first<br /> refusal&quot; of the next book. John hesitated; but<br /> rent and dinner had to be considered, so he<br /> signed. And it is easy to picture his astonish-<br /> ment when, six weeks later, he received a<br /> statement of account from Messrs. Beaner and<br /> Baske, which set forth that only 850 copies<br /> ot the book had been sold, and lhat Mr. John<br /> Fyvie Chaloner was rather heavily in debt to<br /> the firm of Beaner and Baske. John was<br /> frightened. He had begun another sombre novel,<br /> but he set it aside to follow a counsel which he<br /> had from Mr. Beaner at their last meeting—and<br /> write adventures.<br /> Perhaps the following conversation which had<br /> taken place between Mr. Beaner and his partner<br /> before Chaloner&#039;s second book was published will<br /> explain why so few copies of it were sold.<br /> &quot;I don&#039;t much like the report on Chaloner&#039;s<br /> new book,&quot; said Mr. Baske. &quot;It&#039;s high art, and<br /> all that sort of rot, and I don&#039;t believe it will<br /> sell.&quot;<br /> &quot;I don&#039;t believe it will,&quot; replied Mr. Beaner,<br /> and he swore at high art. &quot;I&#039;ve read the begin-<br /> ning and the end of the stuff myself and a good<br /> bit of the middle, and the man&#039;s left out the blood.<br /> If the public learns to expect blood from a man<br /> they will take nothing else.&quot;<br /> &quot;Quite right.&quot; said Mr. Baske. &quot;All the<br /> same, though I don&#039;t believe in this book, I<br /> believe in the chap.&quot;<br /> &quot;When he writes adventures,&quot; observed Mr.<br /> Beaner, &quot;so do I.&quot;<br /> &quot;Well, let&#039;s make him write blood,&quot; said Mr.<br /> Baske. &quot;We can just let this book drop quietly<br /> and lend the man a little money. His boots and<br /> his hat and tie show that he wants money. Then<br /> we can make him do what we like.&quot;<br /> &quot;Not a bad idea,&quot; remarked Mr. Beaner.<br /> &quot;And we can make him give us the option of his<br /> next, besides telling him what it&#039;s to be like. I<br /> don&#039;t think we can lose much, and his last was<br /> meaty. Anyhow, we needn&#039;t lend him much.<br /> We&#039;ll just print a thousand and distribute the<br /> type: there&#039;ll be over sixty review copies—I<br /> mean to prepare the ground for his next blood<br /> handsomely, and we can keep a few copies<br /> unbound and tell him the total sales are eight<br /> hundred and fifty. After all, one must teach<br /> these authors their business; they&#039;ve no sense to<br /> find it out for themselves.&quot;<br /> At first John Chaloner was disgusted at the<br /> idea of another adventure story. But the more<br /> he thought about it the more he warmed to his<br /> work. He began to see that much of the<br /> material he had rejected in writing his first book<br /> was better than the material he had retained.<br /> His repugnance for the work gradually turned to<br /> love of it, and thus his masterpiece was fashioned;<br /> for it was a masterpiece. He took it to Beaner<br /> and Baske; he had no alternative as to that.<br /> Mr. Beaner read it, and Mr. Baske read it.<br /> &quot;My word, it&#039;s a plum,&quot; said the senior<br /> partner.<br /> &quot;It&#039;s a real live plum.&quot; said the junior, &quot;and<br /> now let&#039;s t-ee if we can&#039;t get it cheap.&quot;<br /> Chaloner called at Beaner and Baske&#039;s place of<br /> business again and again. He heard a great<br /> many excuses, but he could not get a decided<br /> answer about the book until two months and a<br /> half had passed. Then his total indebtedness to<br /> the firm was one hundred and fifty pounds.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 161 (#173) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 161<br /> &quot;We can give you one hundred and fifty<br /> pounds advance,&quot; said Mr. Beauer, at last, &quot; and<br /> mind it&#039;s a thumping advance, on account of a<br /> 15 per cent. royalty running all through; and<br /> that&#039;s very high, very high. But we have hopes<br /> that this book will redeem our losses on the last,<br /> you know.&quot;<br /> &quot;But I owe you one hundred and fifty already,&quot;<br /> said Chaloner, frowning,<br /> &quot;Well, you&#039;ll clear yourself,&quot; observed Mr.<br /> Beaner, &quot; and then there&#039;s the rovalty.&quot;<br /> John sighed, and accepted the bargain. He<br /> was very anxious to &quot;clear himself.&quot; But there<br /> seemed no end to the delays in publication. The<br /> autumn and the winter slipped by, the spring<br /> season was over, the summer books were being<br /> issued, but still Chaloner received no proofs.<br /> &quot;My dear sir,&quot; said Mr. Beaner, haughtilv, in<br /> reply to remostrances, &quot;we know when to publish.<br /> That&#039;s part of our business. No date is fixed in<br /> your agreement. Very well then. It&#039;s in your<br /> interests as well as ours that the book should<br /> wait for the propitious moment. You really<br /> must not try to dictate to us, sir. We shouldn&#039;t<br /> dream of dicating to you about your part of the<br /> business of production.&quot;<br /> John had got deeper into debt. Mr. Beaner<br /> was more petulant every time he was asked for<br /> money—and the sums which were asked were<br /> small now.<br /> John lest heart. He began two new novels, but<br /> abandoned both before he had written a dozen<br /> chapters. He was not only dispirited but<br /> unoccupied, and he drank rather freely in con-<br /> sequence. Mr. Beaner&#039;s manner had grown so<br /> repellent that John Chaloner had recourse on<br /> one occasion to a moneylender. He knew it was<br /> foolish, but he did it. And soon he was involved<br /> to such an extent that he dared not think of his<br /> finances, and he grew desperate. One afternoon<br /> late in the summer he penetrated into the offices<br /> of Messrs. Beaner and Baske. He was kept<br /> waiting a long while, but he saw Mr. Baske at<br /> last.<br /> &quot;I tell you frankly what it is,&quot; said Chaloner,<br /> &quot;I&#039;m fearfully hard up, and I want you to pub-<br /> lish the book as soon as possible.&quot;<br /> &quot;Oh, but we couldn&#039;t possibly before the<br /> autumn,&quot; replied Mr. Baske.<br /> &quot;What do you mean by the autumn ?&quot; asked<br /> John with a sigh.<br /> &quot;We can&#039;t say exactly,&quot; answered Mr. Baske.<br /> &quot;Most likely November.&quot;<br /> &quot;1 can&#039;t wait till then,&quot; remarked Chaloner.<br /> Mr. Baske shrugged his shoulders. &quot;Well,&quot;<br /> he said at length, &quot;we&#039;re not inclined to go to<br /> much more expense about your book, Mr.<br /> Chaloner, as to which, frankly, we&#039;re doubtful.<br /> But if it will suit you best, we&#039;ll cry quits over the<br /> money advanced, hand you a cheque for twenty<br /> pounds, and take over the copyright, lock, stock,<br /> and barrel. But only to oblige you.&quot;<br /> &quot;Let me go home and think of it,&quot; said<br /> Chaloner.<br /> &quot;You can always write another one,&quot; said Mr.<br /> Baske as he bowed the author out with an agree-<br /> able smile.<br /> John went home and thought over it bitterly<br /> enough; but then—he could always write another<br /> one. He believed that himself. So he accepted<br /> Mr. Baske&#039;s offer and sold the copyright. The<br /> book was published within six weeks after that,<br /> and 50,000 copies of it were sold in three months<br /> in England alone. Then Chaloner tried &quot;to<br /> write another one.&quot; He drank still more freely<br /> to drown his anger and disgust, and he could not<br /> make his next book live. There was not a spark<br /> of inspiration in it. Beaner and Baske rejected<br /> it after ten other houses had seen it and con-<br /> demned it, and by this time Chaloner was once<br /> more attendant to a lunatic. He tried two more<br /> novels. One was published by a new firm and<br /> was a dead failure. The other was rejected by a<br /> score of publishers.<br /> Then John Fyvie Chaloner ran away to sea for<br /> the third time, and gave up literature and the<br /> idea of falling in love and renting a cottage.<br /> But those copyrights are still real &quot;properties&quot;<br /> to the firm of Beaner and Baske.<br /> Molecule.<br /> ECCLEFECHAN.<br /> THE traveller to the south will remember the<br /> details of the scenery, where the Cale-<br /> donian express combines the contingent of<br /> people from Glasgow and Edinburgh. The<br /> panorama viewed on the carriage windows (those<br /> Euston carriages whose green-and-white so aptly<br /> relieves the hills beneath and clouds above) is<br /> characteristic of the lowlands of Scotland. Likely<br /> he will recall the halt—and if he does so, also he<br /> may have seen that nice bevy of damsels—at<br /> Lockerbie Junction. Then the train, with a good<br /> speed and a zigzag motion, cleaves its way through<br /> the rugged hills and moors of Annandale. With-<br /> out delay it drives by the historic hamlet of Eccle-<br /> fechan.<br /> Ecclefechan has only one absorbing interest in<br /> its association with the name of Tom Carlyle.<br /> Here the Sage of our Era began the anxious toil<br /> of life, and here his mortal part has found its<br /> resting-place.<br /> Mr. Sam. Donald and his wife made a pilgrim-<br /> age to Ecclefechan. Donald, who was a journalist<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 162 (#174) ############################################<br /> <br /> 162<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> and follower of the prophet, wanted intensely to<br /> see this spot of earth. What manner of place<br /> might it be which gave birth to such amazing<br /> genius? It happened that Dumfries was the<br /> scene of the honeymoon, and so one day the<br /> couple paid a visit to the prophet&#039;s native place.<br /> They wondered if the hills and dales were more<br /> didactic tban usual here, if the ozone was any<br /> thicker than it is elsewhere. But the case is not<br /> so. Ecclefechan is such a village, lying in such<br /> environs, as we have seen the like of many a time<br /> in Scotland.<br /> In the valley, traversed by the railroad, crossed<br /> by a modest stream, surrounded by wooded hills,<br /> lies the quiet village. Several rows of haphazard<br /> houses, gathered at the meeting of the roads,<br /> range into some half-a-dozen streets. There are<br /> at least two churches in the place, not to speak of<br /> the countryside. The population is less than a<br /> thousand people. There is a street that goes by<br /> the name of Carlyle Place. Here in a dull-white<br /> house—behind a burn and a hedge—and then in<br /> a low-ceiled and dark room, they told them the<br /> prophet was born, and showed them his things.<br /> The natives talk familiarly of him as &quot;Tom.&quot;<br /> The village has the choice of some nice walks<br /> (that specially to the west a favourite) in the<br /> neighbourhood.<br /> Donald commented on the usual plethora of<br /> churches in so small a village.<br /> &quot;I happen to know,&quot; he said, &quot;that one of<br /> the preachers was prize-poet of his year in<br /> College, and I credit him with brain enough to<br /> supply the needs of the whole village.&quot;<br /> And his wife gave the right answer.<br /> &quot;Why on earth do they not unite?&quot;<br /> Quite near the little town, they found the old<br /> churchyard. The patch of ground is homely and<br /> overgrown with grass. Over from the gate there<br /> is a white pile, more conspicuous than the others.<br /> It belongs to the family of a relative of our hero.<br /> Beside oue wall of the yard were stones bearing<br /> the names of Aitken and Carlyle. Here repose<br /> the mother and brother of our hero. Amid these,<br /> beside the grave of a literary name, the red<br /> stone of simple design is the tomb of the<br /> immoTtal Carlyle His grave was plain then in<br /> the extreme. Amid simple and ordinary things,<br /> the extraordinary man lies in the dust of earth.<br /> Surrounded by a cluster of his kindred, like<br /> priests that guard the inner secret of his temple!<br /> The sandstone is slightly ornamented and bears<br /> this inscription: &quot;Here rests Thomas Carlyle,<br /> who was born at Ecclefechan, 4th Dec. 1795,<br /> and died at 24, Cheyne Row, Chelsea, London, on<br /> Saturday, 5th Feb. 1881.&quot; There is over the<br /> words—the family crest—a dragon-device, and<br /> beneath it the single word, so suitable, &quot; Humili-<br /> tate.&quot; There in that corner, yes, they left the<br /> yard in vain effort to speak the meaning con-<br /> tained in that one word, &quot;Humilitate !&quot; Carlyle<br /> lies in ashes there.<br /> As they wander out the road, that skirts<br /> the wooded hill, sad and thoughtful, with the<br /> verdant soil under-foot and the blue-and-white<br /> sky above, they wonder, as he used to do, what<br /> it is that life means: and the mystery of it<br /> cannot better be resigned than by taking the<br /> hint of that word on his tomb, and learning the<br /> lesson of humility, that the great soul is ever born<br /> out of lowliness.<br /> &quot;I would have expected somehow,&quot; said<br /> Donald, &quot;that this patriotic land might have<br /> raised some kind of monument in the streets of<br /> its capital, or else in Ecclefechan.&quot;<br /> &quot;It would be natural enough,&quot; the lady said<br /> with a comic laugh, &quot;but do you know what you<br /> recall to me V When Schumann heard of the<br /> movement to raise a monument to the glory of<br /> Beethoven, he said they might as well raise one<br /> to the Lord Almighty.&quot;<br /> When they returned to the village, somebody<br /> in the shop (where they made a purchase) told<br /> them of a Roman camp to the east, within easy<br /> walking distance. But that idea had to be aban-<br /> doned on the score of time.<br /> &quot;I remember once before,&quot; said he in his<br /> naive way, &quot;I visited a tiny village. And there<br /> was a Roman camp there—&quot;<br /> &quot;I daresay,&quot; she said, interrupting him, &quot;and<br /> it was inevitable.&quot;<br /> Although they found no marvel there, Donald<br /> and his spouse declare that the day spent in<br /> Carlyle&#039;s village was one of the best, if also the<br /> most sad, of the wt dding-tour.<br /> While in the falling shade they waited the<br /> train at the station, they watched the faultless<br /> lines of rail cutting with a cold gleam away<br /> into the distance—the lines that vanish and ever<br /> remind us, how little the finite can know of the<br /> infinite. And the same sad mood covered the<br /> landscape.<br /> &quot;Do you know I have been thinking, ever<br /> since we left the grave,&quot; said the lady, &quot;but<br /> perhaps 1 ought not to indulge fancies.&quot;<br /> &quot;And why not, my dear?&quot;<br /> &quot;I have been thinking,&quot; she said, &quot;of another<br /> tomb, and what the angel said of its tenant,<br /> &#039;He is not here, he is risen.&#039;&quot;<br /> &quot;It would be no harm,&quot; said Donald, &quot;but<br /> the reverse, to think so.&quot;<br /> # # # # •<br /> &quot;Therefore we learn the lesson,&quot; wrote Donald<br /> in giving some account of this visit to readers of<br /> his own paper, &quot;which all his work was calcu-<br /> lated to teach, that not the chance of life&#039;s setting<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 163 (#175) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> is of any value, but the mystery of endeavour.<br /> Carlyle would not have forbidden us to pay his<br /> memory the tribute of a sentimental visit to his<br /> grave. But in doing that we realise that it is in<br /> vain. How little, after all, can we find of him<br /> there! The life-work we all know to admire has<br /> passed into many a life, the teaching has fused<br /> itself into many a form and fashion. The<br /> majesty of great genius, showing the kinship of<br /> our little life to the star-life in nature, strictly<br /> speaking, belongs not to this time-tied life of<br /> ours. Each noble worker, as he &#039;grapples with<br /> his evil star,&#039; inherits the timeless and tideless<br /> life. And in that sense Carlyle&#039;s identity is else-<br /> where. The gospel of sincerity and love, which<br /> he spread abroad, is the shrine of his worship,<br /> the tomb of his repose—the element that we<br /> must reach to find him in life and not in death,<br /> in power and not in frailty, in hope, in joy, in<br /> satisfaction. And of him also, as of the Scion<br /> of the Highest, may it be said,&#039; He is not here,<br /> he is risen!&#039; Now he inhabits an eternal life,<br /> which we best feel in the fond hearts of his<br /> fellowmen.&quot;<br /> 1892. R. Welsh.<br /> MEMORIALS.<br /> Miss Christina Rossetti.<br /> ALARGE congregation assembled on Nov. 1,<br /> in Christ Church, Woburn-square, London,<br /> to witness the Bishop of Durham dedicat-<br /> ing a beautiful memorial to the late Miss Christina<br /> Georgina Rossetti, which has been erected there.<br /> The memorial consists of five paintings, designed<br /> by the late Sir Edward Burne-Jones, partly<br /> executed by the artist and partly by his chief<br /> assistant, Mr. F.W. Rooke, set in a reredos designed<br /> by the Rev. J. Glendinning Nash, incumbent of<br /> the church. The reredos is divided into five com-<br /> partments. In the central one is a figure of the<br /> Saviour, standing with bowed head, and hands<br /> folded across His breast; and on the table beside<br /> Him is a chalice. In the other compartments are<br /> figures of the four Evangelists, each with a pen<br /> and a book, in which they are inscribing the<br /> words of the Lord. The musical part of the dedi-<br /> cation service consisted of hymns written by Miss<br /> Rossetti.<br /> The Bishop of Durham, in his address from<br /> the pulpit, said there was a saying attributed to<br /> our Lord at a very early date which appeared to<br /> him to express a divine truth—&quot; He that wonders<br /> shall reign.&quot; Wonder, the direct consciousness<br /> of the immeasurable depths of nature and of life,<br /> with the power of disclosing them to others,<br /> was the characteristic endowment of the true<br /> poet. It must appear strange that in clas-<br /> sical times few women were known as poets,<br /> and it was still more surprising that in the crea-<br /> tive period of English poetry no woman took her<br /> place beside the great masters. At last in our<br /> own century not a few women had delivered their<br /> message as poets, and had found a wide welcome.<br /> The explanation of the fact was probably to be<br /> found partly in social changes, and still more in<br /> the larger conception of the Christian faith which<br /> had at length enabled us to see tha.t every variety<br /> of gift was required for the interpretation of<br /> human experience and hope, so that if women<br /> were silent the absence of their voice made itself felt<br /> as never before, and, therefore, they had answered<br /> at last to the claim which had been made upon<br /> them. In Miss Rossetti we recognised the com-<br /> plete!^ consecration of woman&#039;s gift of poetry to<br /> the highest uses. The poet, the pure in heart,<br /> beheld the truth, and sang, not with elaborate<br /> music, but, to use Goethe&#039;s image, &quot;As the bird<br /> sings.&quot; This was perhaps the first characteristic<br /> which struck them in Miss Rossetti&#039;s work. It<br /> was like Wordsworth&#039;s early poems, absolutely<br /> simple and spontaneous. There was no straining<br /> after effect. The melody was the natural expres-<br /> sion of the thought. The contrast between<br /> &quot;Amor Mundi&quot; and &quot;Uphill&quot; in rhythm and<br /> language and form was as complete as in subject;<br /> but the contrast was the result of feeling and not<br /> of art. At the same time, Miss Rossetti saw all,<br /> saw the whole, &quot; the world as God made it,&quot; in<br /> spite of the ravages wrought by man&#039;s self-will.<br /> Miss Rossetti was essentially the spiritual poet<br /> of our age. On her spiritual teaching she con-<br /> centrated her powers more and more as time went<br /> forward. He did not underrate the cost of the<br /> choice. We had lost, no doubt, some studies of<br /> deep passion like the &quot; Convent Threshold,&quot; not<br /> a few delightful parables of life, like the<br /> &quot;Prince&#039;s Progress,&quot; countless delicate fancies,<br /> and passages of weird music, but the message<br /> which we had received outweighed them all. The<br /> message was specially one for our own time. The<br /> physical aspects of nature, the visible sequences<br /> of life, became ever more and more engrossing,<br /> and we were tempted to forget that they were<br /> but signs of the eternal. The poet disclosed<br /> their true significance, and invested common<br /> things with an atmosphere of marvel and reve-<br /> rence. So they were brought back to the<br /> splendid promise from which they started, and,<br /> under a great teacher&#039;s guidance, confessed,<br /> with deeper intelligence than before, that &quot;he<br /> that wonders shall reign.&quot; Nay, they went<br /> further and completed the saying, &quot;He that<br /> wonders shall reign, and he that reigns shall<br /> rest.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 164 (#176) ############################################<br /> <br /> 164<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &quot;Lewis Carroll.&quot;<br /> In the &quot;Alice&quot; Ward of the Hospital for<br /> Sick Children, Great Ormond-street, Bloomsbury,<br /> London, there is now placed a cot which bears<br /> the name of the late &quot;Lewis Carroll.&quot; On<br /> Friday, Oct. 28, Mr. James Tait Black, on behalf<br /> of the subscribers to the memorial fund, pre-<br /> sented to Mr. John Murray, vice-chairman of the<br /> committee of management of the hospital, a<br /> cheque for £ 1000 to endow the cot for ever. The<br /> proceedings took place in presence of a company<br /> which included Miss E. L. Dodgson, Mr. Wilfrid<br /> Dodgson, Mr. Hugh Chisholm, General Sir<br /> Andrew and Miss Clarke, Lady Wharton, Canon<br /> Jelf, Canon and Mrs. Girdlestone, and many<br /> others. Mr. Murray, in returning thanks, ex-<br /> pressed the opinion that no more appropriate<br /> memorial could have been erected to &quot;Lewis<br /> Carroll&quot; than a bed in a hospital which was<br /> devoted to the lives of children.<br /> Alfred the Great.<br /> A meeting of the general committee appointed<br /> for the commemoration of Alfred the Great, at<br /> the public meeting in March last, was held at the<br /> Mansion House on Nov. 3, Lord Welby in the<br /> chair. It was unanimously resolved: &quot;That the<br /> national memorial decided on at the Mansion<br /> House meeting of March 18 shall be at Win-<br /> chester and consist of a statue of King Alfred,<br /> together with a hall to be used as a museum of<br /> early English history.&quot;<br /> It was estimated that .£30,000 would be re-<br /> quired in order to provide a memorial worthy of<br /> the nation, and it is contemplated to open a sub-<br /> scription list in the spring of next year, as it is<br /> hoped that the memorial will be completed in the<br /> 1000th anniversary year of his death. Amongst<br /> other suggestions advanced was that the executive<br /> committee should consider whether some popular<br /> publication might be issued with a view to diffus-<br /> ing public knowledge of Alfred&#039;s life and works.<br /> Also that a loan exhibition of objects pertaining<br /> to the Alfred period should be held in London<br /> during the anniversary year. The general com-<br /> mittee expressed a wish that the executive<br /> committee should take into consideration the<br /> desirability of approaching the Government with<br /> a view to obtaining their support to the com-<br /> memoration, and that communications be opened<br /> with the Universities and the historical and<br /> learned societies of the United States and the<br /> colonies in order to obtain the formation of<br /> committees to co-operate with the general com-<br /> mittee.<br /> Andrew Marvell.<br /> London County Council have decided to mark<br /> the site of Andrew Marvell&#039;s cottage at Hamp-<br /> stead with a brass plate bearing the following<br /> inscription :—<br /> Four feet below this spot is the stone step, formerly the<br /> entrance to the cottage in which lived<br /> ANDREW MARVELL,<br /> Sometime M.P. for Hull,<br /> and<br /> Latin Under Secretary to Oliver Cromwell,<br /> Patriot, Poet, Wit, and Satirist.<br /> Born 31st March, 1621.<br /> Died 18th August, 1673.<br /> He was buried in St. Giles-in-the-Fields.<br /> This memorial brass was placed here by the London<br /> County Council, November, 1898.<br /> The County Council have also before them a<br /> proposal to erect statues to Chaucer and Milton<br /> in London.<br /> BOOK TALK.<br /> <br /> R. HARDY&#039;S volume of poems will be<br /> out in a few days. The title is<br /> &quot;Wessex Poems.&quot;<br /> Mr. Laurence Binvon&#039;s &quot;Second Book of<br /> London Visions&quot; is nearly ready in Elkin<br /> Mathews&#039;s Shilling Garland Series. Mr. Mat-<br /> hews is projecting a volume which will contain<br /> verse by several writers—Mr. Selwyn Image, Mr.<br /> Victor Parr, Mr. Binvon, and &quot;Anodos.&quot; The<br /> title of this will be &quot;The Garland of New<br /> Poetry.&quot;<br /> Professor Geikie is the author of &quot;Earth<br /> Sculpture,&quot; which will appear immediately as a<br /> volume in Murray&#039;s Progressive Science Series.<br /> Mr. R. E. Prothero has resigned the editor-<br /> ship of the Quarter/;/ Jteriew in order to become<br /> agent to the Duke of Bedford. He is succeeded<br /> by his brother, Mr. George Walter Prothero,<br /> Professor of Modern History in the University of<br /> Edinburgh.<br /> An enlarged edition of Messrs. Darlington&#039;s<br /> handbook &quot;London and its Environs,&quot; by E. C.<br /> Cook and E. T. Cook, has lately been issued from<br /> Llangollen. The Londou agents are Messrs.<br /> Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent, and Co.,<br /> Limited.<br /> &quot;A Forgotten Past,&quot; and other stories, by<br /> Fred. J. May, has lately been published by the<br /> Friars Printing Association, Limited.<br /> The Life Story of the late Sir Charles Bright<br /> will be out in December. With it is incorporated<br /> the story of the early hand telegraphs, the<br /> Atlantic cable, and the first telegraphs to India<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 165 (#177) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> and the Colonies. The work will be published by<br /> Messrs. Archibald Constable and Co. in two<br /> large octavo volumes. The authors are Mr.<br /> E. B. Bright and Mr. Charles Bright, F.R.S.E.<br /> The Queen has been pleased to accept a<br /> copy of &quot;The Theft of the Princes,&quot; by F.<br /> Bayford Harrison. It is a small volume con-<br /> taining an account of a curious incident in the<br /> lives of two young princes, one of whom became<br /> the common ancestor of both Her Majesty and the<br /> late Prince Consort.<br /> &quot;Studies in Scottish Ecclesiastical History in<br /> the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries,&quot; by<br /> M. G. J. Kinloch, has just been published by<br /> Messrs. E Grant and Son, of Edinburgh. Price<br /> 6*. net.<br /> &quot;Dona Rufina&quot; (the romance of a cycle tour),<br /> by Heber Daniels, author of &quot;Our Tenants,&quot; has<br /> just been published by Messrs. Greening and Co,<br /> Price 2s. 6d.<br /> Messrs. A. and H. B. Bonner have recently<br /> published, in cheap form, a revised edition of the<br /> Life of James Thompson (&quot;B. V.&quot;), by Mr.<br /> H. S. Salt. The book contains a new portrait of<br /> the pessimist poet, and some additional matter<br /> that will be of interest to readers of &quot;B. V.,&quot;<br /> including a full account of the closing scene, from<br /> the pen of Mr. H. E. Clarke, and a hitherto un-<br /> printed letter from Mr. George Meredith, who<br /> speaks of Thomson&#039;s life as &quot;the most tragic in<br /> our literature.&quot;<br /> Mrs. Alec Tweedie&#039;s last book of travel,<br /> &quot;Through Finland in Carts,&quot; has run through<br /> two large editions, and Messrs. A. and C. Black<br /> have just issued it in a new and cheaper form.<br /> Mrs. Tweedie has now in the press a memoir of<br /> her father, entitled &quot;George Harley; or, the Life<br /> of a London Physician,&quot; which deals with the<br /> popular side of the life of a very able scientist and<br /> physician, whose death a couple of years ago was<br /> a great loss to medical science. George Harley&#039;s<br /> early life was not devoid of adventure; he was<br /> taken up as a spy when his youthful enthusiasm<br /> as a medical student prompted him to join Omar<br /> Pasha&#039;s army, and was condemned to be shot.<br /> He was in Paris shortly after the coup &lt;Titat, and<br /> saw the marriage of Napoleon III. But his later<br /> life is of particular interest. Ill-health dogged<br /> his footsteps for twenty years, twice necessitating<br /> his retirement from his profession, bat mental<br /> strength baffled physical weakness, and he became<br /> one of the best-known physicians in London.<br /> The volume will be published by the&#039; Scientific<br /> Press.<br /> Mr. Andrew Tuer&#039;s newly published &quot;Pages<br /> and Pictures from Forgotten Children&#039;s Books&quot;<br /> contains numerous excerpts and about 400 fac-<br /> simile illustrations selected from a large and<br /> exceedingly scarce collection of books which<br /> appeared for the amusement of children early in<br /> this century or the later years of last. The<br /> modern child will probably find much of the<br /> text and many of the cuts startlingly ludicrous.<br /> Forty plates, reproduced from watercolour<br /> drawings by Mr. William Gibbs, of the most<br /> remarkable among the art treasures at Windsor<br /> Castle, are to be issued in parts to subscribers by<br /> Messrs. Eyre and Spottiswoode, the Queen&#039;s<br /> printers. These chromo-lithographs are all done<br /> on English-made paper of the large size known<br /> as imperial folio, and each of the four parts will<br /> contain letterpress descriptions of the pictures<br /> written by the Marquis of Lorne. The sword of<br /> Napoleon when First Consul, the Royal baptismal<br /> font, the Queen&#039;s chair in the corridor, and Anne<br /> Boleyu&#039;s clock, are some of the subjects of the<br /> first section, and the whole issue of the work,<br /> which is called &quot;Queen Victoria&#039;s Treasures at<br /> Windsor Castle,&quot; will not be more than 1130<br /> copies.<br /> Mr. Kipling has been writing in the Morning<br /> Post a series of naval articles, entitled &quot;A Fleet<br /> in Being.&quot; These will be published shortly in a<br /> volume by Messrs. Macmillan.<br /> An important medical encyclopaedia is being<br /> projected by Messrs. William Green and Sons,<br /> Edinburgh. It will attempt to do such a service<br /> to medical science as the &quot; Encyclopedia Britan-<br /> nica &quot; does for general literature, and the most<br /> distinguished specialists will write for it. The<br /> &quot;Encyclopaedia Medica,&quot; which is the title of the<br /> work, will consist of twelve volumes, to appear<br /> at the rate of one every quarter, beginning early<br /> in 1899.<br /> A volume of Dr. Pusey&#039;s letters, which will be<br /> of the nature of a supplement to the Life by the<br /> late Canon Liddon, will be published shortly by<br /> Messrs. Longmans. The work consists of<br /> &quot;Spiritual Letters,&quot; which is its title, and it has<br /> been prepared by the Rev. J. 0. Johnston and<br /> Canon Newbolt.<br /> Major Sharp Hume is writing for the Cam-<br /> bridge Historical Series a volume on &quot; Spain: its<br /> Greatness and Decay, 1479-1788.&quot; Major Sharp<br /> Hume is, of course, the author of Lives of Sir<br /> Walter Raleigh and Philip II. of Spain, and<br /> other works of the period.<br /> An article on the Book Catalogue of the British<br /> Museum appears in the current number of the<br /> Quarterly Review, from which we learn that the<br /> work, which began in January, 1881, will be<br /> finished about the end of the year 1900, and will<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 166 (#178) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE A UTHOR.<br /> then consist of about 600 quarto volumes. &quot;If an<br /> ideal standard of perfection in details had been<br /> set up, the work would have been indefinitely<br /> protracted, and must have sunk under the accu-<br /> mulated mass of arrears,&quot; therefore speed and<br /> regularity have been the essential points kept in<br /> view during the progress of the work. When the<br /> printing began in 1881, there were 3.000,000<br /> titles in the manuscript Catalogue, but since that<br /> time the accessions exceed half a million. What<br /> an amount of cross-references has to be made,<br /> however, is evident from the fact that the number<br /> of printed volumes in the Museum is about<br /> 2,000,000. Although arrangements were made<br /> for issuing the Catalogue to subscribers, the<br /> revenue from this source is extremely meagre.<br /> The Treasury defrays the cost of the Catalogue<br /> by an annual grant, which has gradually risen to<br /> the sum of .£3000 a year.<br /> Mr. Stopford Brooke issued during the past<br /> month the first volume of &quot;The History of<br /> English Literature,&quot; in the series published by<br /> Messrs. Macmillan, to which volumes have<br /> already been contributed by Professor Saintsbury<br /> and Mr. Gosse. Another volume to come from<br /> Mr; Stopford Brooke will complete the series,<br /> and it will deal with the period between the<br /> Norman Conquest and Elizabeth.<br /> Thackeray&#039;s opinion of Tennyson in 1841 is<br /> contained in a letter quoted in a preface to<br /> &quot;Sketch Books,&quot; in the new biographical edition<br /> of Thackeray&#039;s works:—<br /> Alfred Tennyson, if he can&#039;t make yon like him, will<br /> make yon admire him—he seems to me to have the cachet<br /> of a great man; his conversation is often delightful, I<br /> think; fnll of breadth, manliness, and humour. He reads<br /> all sorts of things, swallows them, and digests them like a<br /> great poetical boa oonstriotor, as he is. Now I hope, Mrs.<br /> Proctor, you will recollect that if your humble servant<br /> sneers at small geniuses he has, on the contrary, a hnge<br /> respect for big ones. Perhaps it is Alfred Tennyson&#039;s great<br /> big yellow face and growling voice that have made an impres-<br /> sion on me; manliness and simplicity of manner go a great<br /> way with me, I fanoy.<br /> Mrs. Gertrude Atherton is venturing into the<br /> field of boys&#039; stories. Her book of adventure,<br /> entitled &quot;The Valiant Runaways,&quot; will be<br /> brought out by Messrs. Service and Paton<br /> immediately.<br /> A new monthly magazine for secondary schools,<br /> to be called the School World, will be launched<br /> next month by Messrs. Macmillan and Co. It<br /> will include articles upon methods of teaching at<br /> home and abroad, detailed syllabuses of instruc-<br /> tion, and lesson notes by specialists in the chief<br /> subjects taught at secondary schools; test-papers<br /> to enable teachers to mark the progress of their<br /> forms month by month, and various other<br /> features.<br /> Mr. Gladstone&#039;s trustees will be greatly obliged<br /> if anyone possessing letters or papers likely to be<br /> useful for the purposes of Mr. Gladstone&#039;s bio-<br /> graphy will send them either to the trustees, at<br /> Hawarden Castle, Chester, or to Mr. Morley, care<br /> of Messrs. Macmillan and Co., St. Martin&#039;s-street<br /> London, W.C. All such letters or papers will be<br /> carefully and promptly returned.<br /> Chapman&#039;s Magazine of Fiction, hitherto<br /> owned by a private syndicate, has been bought by<br /> the General Magazine and Review Company, and<br /> will continue on the same lines and under the<br /> editorship of Mr. Oswald Crawfurd, with a new<br /> title, namely, Crampton&#039;s Magazine.<br /> Mr. Clement Shorter retires from the editor-<br /> ship of the English Illustrated Magazine after<br /> the Christmas number.<br /> Volumes of verse to appear shortly include<br /> &quot;Love Triumphant,&quot; by William Bedford; and<br /> &quot;Edmund: a Ballad,&quot; by Albert Carpenter,<br /> both of which Mr. Elliot Stock will publish.<br /> The number of libraries in London has recently<br /> been increased by two—one situated at the corner<br /> of Melody-road and Allfarthing-lane, Wands-<br /> worth, and the other in Cable-street, St. George&#039;s-<br /> in-the-East. In declaring the former of these to<br /> be duly opened, Sir John Lubbock delivered an<br /> interesting address, remarking that no doubt we<br /> had in London access to grand art galleries and<br /> the richest museums in the world, but this only<br /> made libraries all the more inestimable. From<br /> 1850 to 1866 only two districts of London,<br /> namely, Wandsworth and Westminster, availed<br /> themselves of the Public Libraries Act; from<br /> 1876 to 1866 only two more; but from 1886 to<br /> 1896 no fewer than thirty-two.<br /> Lord Russell of Killowen opened the new<br /> library of St. George&#039;s-in-the-East, to the cost of<br /> which Mr. Passmore Edwards has given .£5000<br /> and 1000 books. Lord Russell said it was a most<br /> gratifying thing that a locality in which the<br /> great bulk of the population consisted of daily<br /> wage-earners had been ready to submit to be<br /> taxed for this great and worthy object, and it<br /> presented a favourable contrast to other divisions<br /> of the metropolis which could probably claim to<br /> be better educated and which were certainly<br /> much more wealthy.<br /> Mr. Grant Allen has written a book on the<br /> habits, ways, and doings of insect and plant life,<br /> which Messrs. Newnes will publish, entitled<br /> &quot;Flashlights on Nature.&quot;<br /> Mr. Swinburne has written an enthusiastic<br /> prefatory note to a new edition of Mrs. Brown-<br /> ing&#039;s &quot;Aurora Leigh,&quot; which Messrs. Smith,<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 167 (#179) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Elder, and Co. have published. He remarks<br /> that &quot; no English contemporary poet by profes-<br /> sion has left us work so full of living fire,&quot; and<br /> that while Mrs. Browning&#039;s genius &quot;has less<br /> hold on earth than Tennyson&#039;s or Browning&#039;s or<br /> Miss Ingelow&#039;s, and less aerial impulse, less<br /> fantastic or spiritual aspiration, than Miss<br /> Rossetti&#039;s,&quot; yet &quot;all these noble poets seem to<br /> play with life and passion like actors or like<br /> students if compared with her.&quot; Mr. Swinburne<br /> concludes his examination of &quot; Aurora Leigh &quot; as<br /> follows:<br /> The piercing and terrible pathos of the story is as incom-<br /> parable and as irresistible as the divine expression of<br /> womanly and motherly rapture which seems to suffuse and<br /> imbue the very page, the very print, with the radiance and<br /> the fragrance of babyhood. There never was, and there<br /> never will be, such another baby in type as that. Other<br /> poets, even of the inferior sex, have paid immortal tribute<br /> to the immortal godhead incarnate in the mortal and<br /> transitory preaenoe of infancy; the homage of one or two<br /> among them, a Homer or a Hugo, may have been worthy to<br /> be mistaken for a mother&#039;s; but here is a mother&#039;s indeed;<br /> and &quot;the yearlong creature&quot; so divinely desaribed must<br /> live in sight of all her readers as long as ha man nature or<br /> as English poetry survives.<br /> &quot;Lithography and Lithographers,&quot; in which<br /> the history of the art is told by Mr. and Mrs.<br /> Pennell, will be published shortly by Mr, Fisher<br /> Unwin. This year, of course, is the centenary of<br /> the discovery of lithography by Alois Senefelder.<br /> Mr. G. A. Storey, A.R.A., is calling his book<br /> of reminiscences &quot;Sketches from Memory.&quot; It<br /> is chiefly, but not solely, a record of studio<br /> experiences, and of the celebrities he has met.<br /> As a lad Mr. Storey wknes-ed the sacking of the<br /> Tuileries in 1848, and this is described in his<br /> volume. There will be about a hundred repro-<br /> ductions of sketches of figures, interiors, and other<br /> subjects. Messrs. Chatto and Windus will pub-<br /> lish the book.<br /> &quot;A History of the Quorn Hunt and its<br /> Masters,&quot; by Mr. William C. A. Blew, is to be<br /> published by Mr. Nimmo in a few days.<br /> Death came to Mrs. Oliphant before she had<br /> completed the task of writing the Annals of the<br /> Blackwood Publishing House, and so the third<br /> volume of the work is from the hand of Mrs.<br /> Gerald Porter. This lady is the daughter of<br /> John Blackwood, with whose reign as the head<br /> of the house the present volume deals. There<br /> are many glimpses of George Eliot, Anthony<br /> Trollope, Lever, and other writers. For example,<br /> here is a letter from Dickens, whom John Black-<br /> wood had evidently been innocently trying to<br /> convince that the &quot;great unknown&quot; author of<br /> &quot;Scenes from a Clerical Life &quot; must be a man:—<br /> The portions of the narrative to which you refer had<br /> not escaped my notioe. But their weight is very light in my<br /> scale, against all the references to children, and against<br /> such marvels of description as Mrs. Barton sitting up in<br /> bed to mend the children&#039;s olothes. The selfish young<br /> fellow with the heart disease in &quot; Mr. Gilfil&#039;s Love Story&quot;<br /> is plainly taken from a woman&#039;s point of view. Indeed,<br /> I observe all the women in the book are more alive than<br /> the men, and more informed from within. As to Janet,<br /> in the last tale, I know nothing in literature done by a<br /> man like the frequent references to her grand form and<br /> her eyes anil her height and so forth: whereas I do know<br /> innumerable things of that kind in books of imagination<br /> done by women. And I have not the faintest doubt that<br /> a woman described her being shut out into the street by<br /> her husband, and conceived and executed the whole idea,<br /> of her following of that clergyman. If I be wrong in this,<br /> then I protest that a woman&#039;s mind has got into some<br /> man&#039;s body by a mistake that onght immediately to be<br /> oorrected.<br /> There is also a rather quaint example of an<br /> author&#039;s letter. It is written by Kinglake in<br /> reply to suggestions that John Blackwood<br /> had been making with regard to Kinglake&#039;s<br /> History:—<br /> I am almost alarmed, as it were, at the notion of<br /> receiving suggestions. I feel that hints from you might<br /> be so valuable and so important it might be madness to ask<br /> you beforehand to abstain from giving me any; but I am<br /> anxious for you to know what the dangers in the way of<br /> long delay might be, the result of even a few slight and-<br /> possibly most useful suggestions. . . . You will perhaps<br /> (after what I have said) think it best not to set my<br /> mind running in a new path lest I shonld take to re-<br /> writing.<br /> The Countess of Warwick has written an account<br /> of her garden at Easton, Essex, under the title<br /> &quot;An Old English Garden,&quot; which Messrs.<br /> Hatchard will issue in a handsome volume.<br /> Mr. Powis Bale will shortly publish, through<br /> Messrs. Wm. Rider and Son, Limited, a handbook<br /> of &quot;Sawmill and Woodworking Machinery &quot;;<br /> and Messrs. Longmans and Co. are printing a<br /> sixth edition of &quot; A Handbook for Steam Users,&quot;<br /> by the same author.<br /> Mr. Bernard Hamilton&#039;s re-incarnation romance,.<br /> &quot;The Light?&quot; is now in a second edition.<br /> A fourth and cheap edition of Mr. Mackenzie<br /> Bell&#039;s &quot;Life of Christina Rossetti,&quot; completing<br /> 2500 copies in this country and in the United<br /> States, will be published immediately, with the<br /> original illustrations, by Mr. Thomas Burleigh.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—Translation and Copyright.<br /> IN your notice on copyright in Holland and<br /> Germany in this month&#039;s Author, you quote<br /> remarks contained in Das Recht der Feder<br /> on &quot;dicta&quot; found in the writings of Dr. J. D.<br /> Veergens, where he asserts as his opinion that<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 168 (#180) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &quot;translation is not piracy, but original work,&quot;<br /> and that &quot;an idea as soon as it is expressed is<br /> public property.&quot; As the German paper correctly<br /> asserts, there may be cases in which such liberty<br /> may be looked upon as the rights which &quot;high-<br /> waymen &quot; take on themselves, and it is quite com-<br /> prehensible that any author should require the<br /> work of his brain to be protected and respected<br /> by demanding good work in his translator. If,<br /> however, the translator tloei furnish original<br /> work (by using his own mind and completely<br /> merging himself in the author he endeavours to<br /> reproduce), and if the author also guards his own<br /> expression by only making public what he has no<br /> reason to be ashamed of, and himself regards in<br /> the light of public property, is any further pro-<br /> tection of the author&#039;s rights needed after he has<br /> given well-considered assent to its reproduction<br /> by means of translation, and would not transla-<br /> tion rank higher if it were treated as original<br /> work? Could a more scathing criticism of ordi-<br /> nary translation be found than in the words<br /> of Das Jtecht der Feder, when that journal<br /> remarks, speaking of the translator: &quot;Only his<br /> own interests make the translator a thief. The<br /> foulest pamphlet that delights the herd is<br /> by far more precious to him than the most<br /> important intellectual work, which pleases only a<br /> few cultivated people.&quot;<br /> Can &quot;piracy&quot; of the sort described in Das<br /> Jtecht der Feder claim for itself the honourable<br /> name of translation? And is not the real thief<br /> in translation work he who does not rob enough<br /> from the original author, interpolating his own<br /> ideas instead, as also he who chooses to remain<br /> anonymous? We can put up with no piece-work<br /> in translation, but it must so resemble the<br /> original as to seem what &quot;forgery &quot; would be to<br /> original handwriting.<br /> Again, the author ashamed of his expression<br /> should never dare to make it public unless prepared<br /> to take the consequences. Ida L. Benecke.<br /> II.—Cut Edges.<br /> As having successively in The Author, in the<br /> Fall Mall Gazette, and in Literature protested<br /> against the issuing of books with uncut edges,<br /> I was delighted to read the &quot; plea for cut edges&quot;<br /> of Mr. John C. Shannon in The Author for<br /> November, and delighted also to see that Mr.<br /> Marston has been taking up the subject in the<br /> Fublishers&#039; Circular and in Literature.<br /> Both as authors and as readers all authors are<br /> deeply interested in cut edges. As authors they<br /> would gain better reviews and increased chances<br /> of sale; as readers they would save much lost<br /> time and temper.<br /> I would venture to suggest that authors should<br /> have a clause inserted in their agreement pro-<br /> viding for publication with cut edges; also that<br /> the proprietors of all magazines and newspapers<br /> should follow the example of The Author and of<br /> Literature, and issue their publications with cut<br /> edges. .i.i J. M. Lely.<br /> III.—The Pessimism of Young Writers.<br /> The name subscribed to a short Indian story<br /> (&quot; Thirty Years After &quot;) in a late issue of the<br /> Temple Bar Magazine is one of hereditary<br /> prestige. Miss Zoe Procter is the granddaughter<br /> of &quot; Barry Cornwall,&quot; the friend of Lamb and<br /> Shelley, a poet himself, and father of Adelaide<br /> Procter, whose name is still familiar. One of<br /> her uncles is Professor Forrest, of Bombay, who<br /> has been a skilful contributor to the history of<br /> Warren Hastings&#039;s administration, another being<br /> a successful novelist, whose &quot; Eight Days &quot; made<br /> many friends in the Comhill, under the editor-<br /> ship of the late Mr. Payn. Miss Procter pro-<br /> mises to chasser de race; she can write with<br /> taste and eloquence; her subject, too, is viewed<br /> squarely, and in high relief. It is, however, right<br /> that she should be warned against the tempta-<br /> tion so apt to beset young artists—that of at-<br /> tempting to make our flesh creep, like the Fat<br /> Boy in &quot;Pickwick.&quot; A little experience is sure<br /> to show her that real life is sorrowful enough;<br /> and that Bacon never said a wiser thing than<br /> he did when he laid down the canon that it was<br /> the mission of art to &quot;conform the shows of<br /> things to the desires of the mind.&quot;<br /> Buckleigh, Westward Ho. H. G. Keene.<br /> IV.—Christmas Literatube.<br /> Christmas is drawing near apace, and the<br /> bookstalls are already flooded by Christmas<br /> numbers, but unless these are very different in<br /> character to what they have been of late years,<br /> they can hardly be included in Christmas cheer.<br /> Although most current literature is of the<br /> sensational pessimistic kind, it seems there must<br /> be a special collection of horrors and tragedies for<br /> the so-called festive season. Formerly Christinas<br /> stories were uniformly bright, everything came<br /> right in the end, even at the risk of probability.<br /> But now we have changed all that, and the pro-<br /> bability is strained in the opposite direction.<br /> Even the old-fashioned ghost story has<br /> degenerated, and in the effort to produce some-<br /> thing abnormally blood-curdling and thrilling,<br /> has missed its effect.<br /> Is it because, like the Germans, when we feel<br /> merry we must sing sad songs, or is it that the<br /> up-to-date imagination craves excitement and<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 169 (#181) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 169<br /> sensation of a morbid nature, and cannot be con-<br /> tent without them?<br /> However, every one is not youns and modern<br /> Surely some people would still prefer a reminder<br /> of the good old stories. Some who possess a<br /> calm and healthy mind, which, like a healthy<br /> appetite, requires no unwholesome condiments.<br /> But probably, as the masterpieces of the great<br /> writers of the Renaissance were the offspring of<br /> sound minds and stalwart bodies, the present<br /> style of writing is the product of overwrought<br /> neurotic beings, who, in their turn, are the result of<br /> the rush and hurry—the feverish unrest of the age.<br /> Anyhow, the demand at present appears to be for<br /> a copious amount of the horrible in Christmas<br /> literature, and as there is neither art nor genius<br /> required to supply it, no doubt the quality will be<br /> kept up, and the Christmas number will have<br /> numerous tales of misery and crime and illustra-<br /> tions in keeping. _ I. S.<br /> V.—Editorial Autocracy.<br /> Would it not be well for authors to combine<br /> and form themselves into an Authors&#039; Protection<br /> Society. At present editors have us all on the<br /> hip, except, of course, front-rank writers. I do<br /> not mean to say there are not courteous editors,<br /> but they are certainly in the minority.<br /> It should be made an impossibility for editors<br /> to keep MSS. at their own pleasure, and to pay<br /> for same just when they fancy. I think it is<br /> high time that authors should in every particular<br /> put their affairs on a business footing. There is<br /> entirely too much servility amongst us. Let us<br /> be honest and admit it. Let us also recognise<br /> that any reform must come from within, and that<br /> tee must help ourselves. No assistance can<br /> possibly come from outside.<br /> It is quite plain that we must steadfastly and<br /> strenuously resist the publishers&#039; agreements just<br /> promulgated, and I would earnestly suggest that<br /> a firm stand be also made against editorial<br /> autocracy.<br /> My proposition is that authors, instead of send-<br /> ing contributions direct to a magazine or paper,<br /> should forward them to a society, to be called the<br /> Distribution Society (or other suitable name), each<br /> MS. to be stamped with the name of the Society.<br /> A fee of Is. to be inclosed for each firm the MS.<br /> is submitted to.<br /> All editors called upon by the agents of the<br /> society to be made clearly aware that MS. left<br /> with them must, if rejected, be returned within a<br /> fortnight to the society. Payment to be made<br /> within a month. No less rate than one guinea<br /> per thousand words to be offered.<br /> Editors refusing these terms to be severely let<br /> alone.<br /> Acceptance of MSS. from the society to be<br /> deemed as compliance with said terms.<br /> The Authors&#039; Syndicate might be asked to<br /> undertake the reception and distribution of the<br /> MSS. of the proposed society.<br /> Perhaps the editor will kindly give his opinion<br /> on these suggestions. Spero Meliora.<br /> VI.—A Disagreeable Experience.<br /> Perhaps, as a warning to other writers, you will<br /> kindly give publicity to the methods adopted in<br /> my case by the Strand Magazine.<br /> I sent in two type-written stories for the<br /> editor&#039;s consideration—one on May 21, the other<br /> on June 9. Both were returned on Oct. 27.<br /> The length of time for which the MSS. were<br /> detained is in itself a sufficient grievance; but<br /> that is not the worst feature of the case. The<br /> MSS. were utterly disfigured by scribbled com-<br /> ments and suggestions, which would have been<br /> ludicrous had it not been for their unwarrantable<br /> impertinence.<br /> On my writing a letter of complaint to the<br /> editor, asking him to refund me for having the<br /> MSS. re-typed, he replied, without the least<br /> attempt at apology, that if I sent him my manu-<br /> script, he would have it cleaned!<br /> There is no need for concealment in the matter.<br /> I therefore give the title of the magaziue, and<br /> append my own name.<br /> W. B. Wallace, B.A.<br /> (Member of the Society of Authors.)<br /> THE BOOKS OF THE MONTH.<br /> [Oct. 24 to Nov. 22—457 Books.]<br /> Aekworth, John. The Scowcroft Critics. 3/6. Clarke.<br /> .VI mis. W. M, The Book of the Master. &#039;6/- Murray.<br /> Adeney, W. F. Women of the New Testament. 3/6. Service.<br /> Aitken, E. H. The Five Windows of the Soul. 6/- Murray.<br /> Alexander, Mrs. The Coat of Her Pride. 6/- White.<br /> Alford, H. S. L., and Sword, W. D. Egyptian Soudan. 10 - net.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Allen, A M. Gladys in Grammar Land. 2/6. Slmpkin.<br /> Ambrose, W., and Ferguson, W. R Land Transfer Acts (75 &lt;fc &#039;97).<br /> 10/- Butterworth.<br /> Ames, Mrs. E. An A B C for Baby Patriots. 3/6. Dean.<br /> Anderson, T. McC. Contributions to Clinical Medicine. 10/6 net.<br /> Pentlond.<br /> Andrews, William (ed.). Bygone Middlesex. 7/6. Andrews.<br /> Anne, Mrs. C. One Summer Holiday. 5/- Macqueen.<br /> Anonymous. Pages from a Private Diary. 6/- Smith and E.<br /> Anonymous. The Fortunes of the Charlton Family. 16.<br /> Wells Gardner.<br /> Anonymous (author of &quot; Tip Cat,&quot;&#039; Ac.). Bob. 3/6. Innes.<br /> Anonymous. Genealogy of the Earls of Llandaff of Thomastown,<br /> 12/6 net. Sands.<br /> Anonymous. Tbe Hypocrite. 2,6 I irecning.<br /> Anonymous (H. B. and B. T. B.). The Modern Traveller. 3/6 Arnold.<br /> Anonymous. A Prisoner from France. Memoirs of Ohas. Boothby.<br /> 6/- Black.<br /> Argyll, Duke of. Organic Evolution Cross-examined, bj- Murray.<br /> Armstrong, W. Gainsborough and His Place in English Art.<br /> 10.5 - net. Heim-mann<br /> Arnold-Forster, H. 0. The Coming of the Kilogram. 2/6. Cuscll.<br /> Archer, J. G. a Social Upheaval. A novel. 6/- Greening.<br /> Ashbourne, Lord. Pitt: Some Chapters of His Life and Times.<br /> 21/- Longman.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 170 (#182) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Ash ion. John. History of Gambling in England. 7/6. Duckworth.<br /> Atlee, H. Falconer. A. Woman of Impulse. 6/- White.<br /> Aut-ten. W., and Nesblt, E. A Book of Dogs. 2/6. Dent.<br /> Avery, Harold. The Dormitory Flag. 5/- Nelson.<br /> Bail ie, J. Walter Grighton. 2 6 net. Edinburgh: Livingstone.<br /> Baker, James. The Cardinal&#039;s Page. 6/- Chapman.<br /> Baring-Gould, E. M. 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Bebman.<br /> THE AUTHOE.<br /> SCALE FOR ADVERTISEMENTS.<br /> Front Page<br /> Other Pages<br /> Half of a Page<br /> Quarter of a Page<br /> Eighth of a Page<br /> Single Oolumn Advertisements<br /> Bills for Insertion<br /> £4 0 0<br /> 3 0 0<br /> 1 10 0<br /> 0 I5 0<br /> 0 7 B<br /> per Inch 0 6 0<br /> per 2000 3 0 0<br /> Reductions made for a Series of Six or Twelve Insertions.<br /> All letters respecting Advertisements should be addressed to tbe<br /> Advertisement Manager, The Author Office, 4, Portugal-street,<br /> London, W.C.	https://historysoa.com/files/original/5/323/1898-12-01-The-Author-9-7.pdf	publications, The Author
324	https://historysoa.com/items/show/324	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 08 (January 1899)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+08+%28January+1899%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 08 (January 1899)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1899-01-02-The-Author-9-8					173–196																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1899-01-02">1899-01-02</a>							8			18990102	XT b e Hutbor,<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. 8.] JANUARY 2, 1899. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only.<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOE some years it has been the practice to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices, &amp;c, for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to carry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both sides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers can also work ont the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all disoounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> T 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 174 (#186) ############################################<br /> <br /> i74 THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> I. in VERY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> ITi advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advioe<br /> sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advioe as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudulent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that you may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Society now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to-<br /> communicate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, Ac.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to oome, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanoed 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, reoently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> oorreot: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of course, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who oall this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6s. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> The Editor is always glad to receive short papers and<br /> communications on all subjects connected with literature<br /> from members and others. Nothing can do more good to<br /> the Society than to make The Author complete, attractive,<br /> and interesting. Will those who are willing to aid in this<br /> work send their names and the special subjects on which<br /> thoy are willing to write?<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> 1.—Canadian Copyright.<br /> ALONG article appears in the Pall Mall<br /> Gazette of Dec. 26 on Canadian Copy-<br /> right. It is therein stated that Mr.<br /> FitzPatrick, the Solicitor General, will bring in<br /> a Bill during the next Session. We have good<br /> reason to believe that this will not be the case.<br /> Canadian Copyright has been in the air for some<br /> time, and no doubt the Canadians will, sooner or<br /> later, make a fresh endeavour to obtain Copy-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 175 (#187) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> i75<br /> right legislation. We have good reason to think<br /> that this endeavour will not be made next<br /> Session.<br /> II.—The Literary Agent and the Society.<br /> An old member of the Society writes to the<br /> Secretary to the effect that her business is now<br /> .conducted for her by a literary agent, and that<br /> she resigns membership. She supposes, in a<br /> word, that the literary agent can do for her what<br /> the Society undertakes to do: and she supposes<br /> that the Society exists for each member individu-<br /> ally. These two suppositions are both wrong and<br /> mischievous.<br /> (1.) The literary agent can place her books and<br /> get an agreement more or less satisfactory. His<br /> powers may be measured by the popularity of the<br /> author, which is as it should be. But in the<br /> case of a dispute with publisher or editor, where<br /> is the literary agent? He can only advise going<br /> to a solicitor. The Society supplies a solicitor.<br /> The literary agent, again, can only lay the agree-<br /> ment before an author: it is the Society who<br /> teaches him what the agreement means for both<br /> sides—an inestimable service to literary property.<br /> (2.) But the Society, though it is ready to work<br /> for each member individually, works for the<br /> whole profession of literature. The subscriptions<br /> of the more powerful members pay for the law<br /> expenses incurred in the defence of the weaker.<br /> In this way a feeling of brotherhood, the sense of<br /> a common profession with common aims, is for<br /> the first time growing up among those who create<br /> literary property. This most invaluable result of<br /> common action demands absolutely the adhesion<br /> of every man and every woman of letters to the<br /> Society. It may be that all the members do not<br /> agree with every act of the Committee. But they<br /> must agree in the main object—the maintenance<br /> and defence of literary property, not only for the<br /> individual but for the whole profession. There<br /> have been cases in which members have resigned<br /> simply because they did not approve of some small<br /> vote or resolution. They were unable to under-<br /> stand that behind that insignificant vote lay the<br /> grand object of the Society, namely, to repeat,<br /> &quot;the maintenance and defence of literary property,<br /> not only for the individual but for the whole pro-<br /> fession.&quot;<br /> Again, suppose a case of disagreement between<br /> author and literary agent—I think nothing more<br /> likely when I look round and see the many new<br /> agents and the many duties which are laid upon<br /> them. In such a case the author is only protected<br /> by going to law at his own expense. If he were<br /> a member of the Society, the case would be con-<br /> ducted for him.<br /> I say nothing of the danger which is rapid ly<br /> rising before us, of committing to the agent the<br /> whole of the literary business unchecked. It is<br /> the old confidence game once played between<br /> author and publisher. We must never forget the<br /> lessons of the past. It is as dangerous to intrust<br /> blind confidence to an agent as to a publisher.<br /> W. B.<br /> III.—Translation and Reteanslation.<br /> Messrs. George Bell and Sons have raised a<br /> curious, and, as far as we know, a quite novel<br /> question of copyright in the Times. They pub-<br /> lish, it appears, four copyright works in English<br /> in England on the British Navy. A Captain<br /> Von Stenzel, who has been bringing: out in<br /> German and in Germany a treatise in many<br /> volumes dealing with the armies and navies of<br /> the European powers generally, has, in a volume<br /> dealing with the British navy, translated amongst<br /> other things portions of Messrs. Bell&#039;s copyright<br /> works. So far as this officer is concerned, Messrs.<br /> Bell have no complaint to make, having, we<br /> presume, sold or in some other legal manner<br /> parted with their translation rights. What they<br /> complain of is that an English translation, called<br /> the &quot;British Navy,&quot; of the volume of Captain<br /> Von Stenzel&#039;s work which deals with the British<br /> navy has been recently made by Mr. A. Son-<br /> nenschein and published in London. The result-<br /> ing competition with Messrs. Bell&#039;s original<br /> works (it is not stated by what authors) is<br /> obvious. &quot;The origin of the work is not revealed<br /> in the English edition, but, on the contrary,<br /> the translator in his preface seems rather to<br /> imply that the book was designed to supply a<br /> want existing in this country,&quot; but there is an<br /> acknowledgment of the use which has been made<br /> of the English books in a list given after the<br /> preface, where they are stated to have been con-<br /> sulted by author and translator.<br /> Two questions arise upon this statement: (1)<br /> Is what has been done in accordance with usual<br /> literary practice and ordinary literary courtesy;<br /> and (2) has there been an infringement of copy-<br /> right in the legal sense&#039;t To the first question<br /> we must answer, yes. Acknowledgment, of<br /> course, is no excuse for infringement of copy-<br /> right, as it is by far too often thought to be,<br /> but acknowledgment should clearly be made<br /> in a case like this. The answer to the second<br /> question is a little more difficult. The fact of the<br /> alleged infringement being the result of a retrans-<br /> lation, however, cannot affect it. The only question<br /> is whether the matter published by Mr. Sonnen.<br /> schein is materially and substantially the same as<br /> that published by Messrs. Bell. Absolutely the<br /> same the two productions cannot be. The mere<br /> rolling of many books into one would prevent that<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 176 (#188) ############################################<br /> <br /> 176<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> IV.—A Copyright Case in India.<br /> An interesting case coming under the 18th<br /> section of the Copyright Act has just been<br /> tried in the High Courts in India, but<br /> unfortunately the main difficulty of that<br /> section was not in dispute, as it was<br /> acknowledged between the defendant and the<br /> plaintiff that the plaintiff had been employed<br /> under that section. The case was shortly as<br /> follows:<br /> The editor of the Madras Standard (the<br /> defendant) employed the plaintiff to write certain<br /> articles on the lives of representative men of<br /> Southern India for his paper. Such lives were<br /> written and produced in the paper, subject to<br /> certain editorial alterations, and it was acknow-<br /> ledged by both the plaintiff and defendant<br /> that this employment came under the 18th<br /> section of the Act, and that the copyright lay<br /> with the defendant, subject to the terms of that<br /> section. The matter thus used in the paper was<br /> then reproduced in book form, together with<br /> other lives written by the defendant in a book<br /> called &quot;The Representative Men of Southern<br /> India,&quot; and subsequently in another book of<br /> Representative Indians &#039; published in England.<br /> The plaintiff&#039;s action was brought because the<br /> defendant had infringed the plaintiff&#039;s rights<br /> under the proviso in the section referred to,<br /> which runs as follows:<br /> Provided always that during the term of twenty-eight<br /> years the said proprietor, projector, publisher, or condaotor<br /> shall not publish any such essay, article, or portion<br /> separately or singly without the consent previously<br /> obtained of the author thereof or his assigns.<br /> The point the judge had to decide was whether<br /> such consent had been given directly or impliedly.<br /> There was scanty evidence on this point, and it<br /> appeared a difficult question for decision. Finally,<br /> however, the judge, after a very careful summing-<br /> up of the whole facts of the case, gave a verdict<br /> for the plaintiff. The final words of his summing-<br /> up were as follows:<br /> No doubt his (the plaintiff&#039;s) feelings may have been hurt,<br /> particularly by the announcement that the defendant is the<br /> author of all the lives therein published, but in pocket it<br /> cannot be said that he suffered substantially by the publica-<br /> tion of that book.<br /> The plaintiff was awarded 200 rupees. The<br /> judge&#039;s decision seems to be a thoroughly fair<br /> one, as the plaintiff was unable in any case to<br /> utilise his own work for twenty-eight years, and<br /> thus could not have been damaged pecuniarily to<br /> any extent.<br /> This is a short epitome of the case. It is an<br /> interesting case, but iinfortunately does not bear<br /> directly on the great difficulty of the section<br /> under which the judgment is given.<br /> V.—&quot;A Curious Question.&quot;<br /> I think Sir Walter Besant&#039;s solution is nearer<br /> the point than that of Mr. Thring, but neither is<br /> to my mind correct. In such contracts as I have<br /> signed I have granted a licence &quot;to print, bind,<br /> advertise, and sell.&quot; This is what most contracts<br /> mean but very few specify. No contract is in-<br /> tended to mean that a publisher has a right to<br /> traffic in an author&#039;s works. The publisher has<br /> no right to buy or re-acquire or re-sell an author&#039;s<br /> works, and I contend that licence to sell means to<br /> sell once and once only and to only one. If this<br /> were not so, there would be nothing to prevent a<br /> publisher re-acquiring copies of a book which he<br /> had &quot;remaindered&quot; at a few pence, a fraction only<br /> of which he paid to the author, and then re-selling<br /> it for several shillings and paying the author no<br /> royalty.<br /> If my view is held to be correct, &quot;A Curious<br /> Question&quot; is as badly put as the answers. A<br /> publisher agrees to pay an author 10, 15, 20, or<br /> 25 per cent. on the nominal selling price of every<br /> copy, and it matters not a jot whether the copies<br /> sold come direct to him from the printers and<br /> binders or have passed back into his hands<br /> through a bookseller. The author is entitled to<br /> receive his full royalty, less the amount paid on<br /> the copies when treated as remainder—assum-<br /> ing, of course, that the author has not given the<br /> publisher power to re-acquire.<br /> Martin J. Pritchard.<br /> VI.—The Charge for Corrections.<br /> The question of corrections has been from time<br /> to time referred to in The Author, but it seems<br /> necessary to refer to it again, as the matter is<br /> one of great importance to all authors, and is one<br /> of those items which are exceedingly difficult to<br /> check in a publisher&#039;s accounts. The author<br /> should be careful in correcting his proofs to note<br /> what are printers&#039; errors and what are his own<br /> corrections, and he should, when possible, keep<br /> duplicate proofs with all his corrections, so as to<br /> be able at a subsequent date to refute any charge<br /> which might appear extortionate. In making his<br /> own corrections the author should be careful<br /> where he deletes one word or phrase to put in a<br /> word or phrase corresponding in length, as to run<br /> over from page to page is often a very heavy and<br /> expensive matter.<br /> The reason for these hints is the fact that in<br /> agreements a clause somewhat on the following<br /> lines is generally inserted:<br /> The cost of correction of other than the printers&#039; errors<br /> in the proofs of the said work exceeding shillings<br /> per sheet of sixteen pages is to be borne by the said<br /> author.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 177 (#189) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &#039;77<br /> It is quite fair that the publishers should be<br /> protected from expensive and troublesome authors&#039;<br /> corrections, as cases have been known in which<br /> authors have altered proofs and made corrections<br /> to such an extent as absolutely to prevent any<br /> profit accruing from the sale of the work, but this<br /> is an exception. The practical working-out of<br /> this clause is difficult. The amount generally<br /> allowed to the author per sheet of sixteen pages<br /> is ten shillings. Under no circumstances should<br /> an author allow .the amount to be reduced as low<br /> as five shillings, unless he feels quite certain that<br /> his MS. needs no correction and is typewritten.<br /> After the book is produced an account is some-<br /> times forwarded to the author charging, say, .£10<br /> for corrections. If the book is twenty sheets,<br /> that would mean that the whole cost of cor-<br /> rections, supposing the author was allowed<br /> ten shillings, would be £20. Corrections are<br /> generally reckoned by the time of the man<br /> employed, at the rate of one shilling per<br /> hour. As a matter of fact the printers<br /> do not pay is. per hour to their employes, so that<br /> there is always a margin of profit; but, supposing<br /> is. per hour is the actual payment, then it would<br /> mean that the corrections in the book amounted<br /> to the work of one man for 400 hours, or the work<br /> of one man for forty days at the rate of ten hours<br /> per day. That would be merely reckoning authors&#039;<br /> corrections, as you will see the clause (which is<br /> the usual one) does not charge for printers&#039;<br /> errors. If the authors&#039; corrections amount to this<br /> heavy item, it is possible that the printers&#039; errors<br /> also amount to a fair sum, in which case you<br /> would have to add so many more days&#039; work on<br /> to your compositors&#039; labour. It is very important<br /> to keep in mind that daily papers have to be<br /> corrected with great rapidity, in order to get<br /> them before the public in time. Compare, then,<br /> the time expended in the corrections of a book,<br /> as shown above, with the time which must be<br /> necessarily expended in the correction of a daily<br /> paper. It is almost impossible to place any con-<br /> nection between the size of an alteration and the<br /> time it takes, as sometimes the insertion of a<br /> word will throw out the type for some pages. To<br /> be able to put a firm check on the corrections the<br /> author should certainly note the difference<br /> between printers&#039; errors and his own corrections,<br /> and ought to try to make his full corrections<br /> when the type is what is technically called in<br /> &quot;slip form,&quot; before it is made up into pages.<br /> G. H. T.<br /> VII.—An American Literary Agency.<br /> The agency undertakes (1) to read MSS. and<br /> to advise on their defects, (2) to give them<br /> &quot;grammatical and rhetorical&quot; revision, (3) to<br /> advise as to their disposal, and (4) to make type-<br /> written copies.<br /> The charge for these services are:—(1) For read-<br /> ing MSS., 50 cents for the first 2000 words and<br /> 25 cents for every additional thousand words. (2)<br /> For a letter of general advice, 50 cents, or 2.1., in<br /> addition to the fee for reading. (3) For cor-<br /> rection and revision, a dollar an hour, in addition<br /> to the reading fee. (4) For typewriting, 60<br /> cents a thousand words; if two copies are taken<br /> 80 cents a thousand words, i.e., 3*. 3rf. a thousand<br /> words, which is more than double the usual type-<br /> writing charge with us. (5) For reading a MS. of<br /> more than 40,000 words, and less than 100,000, and<br /> for giving a list of publishers and a general letter<br /> of advice, the fee is 10 dollars, or £2.<br /> If the Bureau sells a MS. for an author it<br /> takes a commission of 25 per cent. instead of<br /> the 10 per cent. which contents our agents. On<br /> the whole, it seems as if the Bureau expected<br /> to deal with short papers, and with candidates<br /> whose work was hopeless. There is an enormous<br /> number of such unfortunates in America as well<br /> as here.<br /> VIII.—By the Agreement.<br /> Especial attention is desired to the following<br /> case. The author does not wish her name to<br /> be mentioned, so that one must also suppress<br /> the name of the worthy publisher.<br /> A lady was anxious to produce a book—the one<br /> book she would ever write. She took her MS. to<br /> A. B., who, without giving her a formal agree-<br /> ment, offered by letter to publish the book for<br /> her on commission. The following are alleged<br /> to have been the terms:<br /> (1) The author was not to pay more than .£30.<br /> (2) The publisher was to print and bind an<br /> edition of 500 copies.<br /> (3) He was to advertise to the extent of .£15,<br /> but no more.<br /> (4) The book was to be sold at 6s.<br /> (5) He was to account to the author for sales<br /> at 3*. each.<br /> (6) He was next to take 10 per cent. on the<br /> sales.<br /> [Observe that a small edition of 500 only, even<br /> if all the available copies, 450, are sold at<br /> an average of 3*. 6d. each, only produces<br /> the sum of .£78 15s., out of which would<br /> come the publisher&#039;s commission, so that<br /> a large sum for advertising is out of the<br /> question. That of .£15 represents over<br /> jd. a copy.]<br /> The lady was perfectly ignorant about publish-<br /> ing. Nor did she seek advice. What the man<br /> proposed to do was to sell the book at 3*. 6d. or<br /> 3s. jd. and call it 3*. That gave him 14 ?- per cent.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 178 (#190) ############################################<br /> <br /> 178<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> on the sales to begin with. He was then to take<br /> 10 per cent. on the sum thus curtailed. This<br /> meant 8-*- per cent. on the actual sales, in all, 22f<br /> per cent. And this he called a commission busi-<br /> ness at 10 per cent.!<br /> This, however, was not all. When the account<br /> came in it was found that he had printed 750<br /> copies instead of 500, and that he had spent,<br /> according to his own showing, £45 in advertising.<br /> Now this was against the agreement in the first<br /> place, and for a publisher 10 expend so large a<br /> sum on so small a book argued cither ignorance of<br /> his trade, or else—whatever you please. For .£45<br /> on the book meant actually is. ggd. on every<br /> single copy, landing the book in certain loss.<br /> His bill ran as follows:<br /> 500 copies:<br /> Cost of composition, printing,<br /> ^640<br /> 7<br /> O<br /> 5<br /> 3<br /> 0<br /> «5<br /> 0<br /> 0<br /> To tbis he added 10 per cent.,<br /> 60<br /> 10<br /> O<br /> I know not by what right ..<br /> 6<br /> 1<br /> 8<br /> To 250 copies:<br /> 66<br /> 11<br /> 8<br /> 4<br /> 13<br /> 4<br /> Sales, 376<br /> 30<br /> 9<br /> 8<br /> Free, 77<br /> 453<br /> 56<br /> 8<br /> 0<br /> 5<br /> 2<br /> y<br /> £101 14 8<br /> Having, therefore, added 10 per cent. to the<br /> cost of production, and taken the same from the<br /> sales, and having broken the agreement by<br /> printing other 250 copies and charging £45 for<br /> advertising, he thus brought in a lots of .£50<br /> odd.<br /> At this juncture the lady took advice, and there<br /> was a correspondence in which it became manifest-<br /> that the advertising had been in great part the<br /> filling up of columns secured in advance. But<br /> of course he had no right to charge a farthing<br /> more than the £&#039;15 agreed upon.<br /> However, he sent in a second account. The<br /> item of advertising now appears as .£42 144-. 3^/.,<br /> instead of .£15, and the cost of machining<br /> and paper for the extra 250 copies is still<br /> entered.<br /> But on the other side he cancels ..£23 S.1. gd.,<br /> which still leaves .£4 odd more than he is<br /> entitled to. And instead of 10 per cent, added<br /> to the cost of production he puts in £8 16*. 5&lt;7.<br /> for &quot; indirect expenses,&quot; which mean, I suppose,<br /> taking a &#039;bus home in the evening.<br /> A man may argue that he must make money<br /> out of a book in order to live. The answer to<br /> that is, to make it above board: not by persuad-<br /> ing an ignorant woman that the trade price of a<br /> 6*. book is 3*. : nor by adding &quot;indirect expenses.&quot;<br /> Let him say flatly &quot;I must have so much out<br /> of the book or I cannot undeilake it. If I<br /> am to sell it on commission, guarantee so much.&quot;<br /> Of cour.-e if the man says this candidly and<br /> openly, but then proceeds in the way indicated<br /> above, then we are no farther forward.<br /> My correspondent in sending me these accounts<br /> calls attention to them as coming from &quot;a pub-<br /> lisher who is a gentleman.&quot; Yes, the wordnow-<br /> a-days may cover a very large proportion of male<br /> humanity. Indeed, there are indications that it<br /> covers the whole. Quite a &quot; gentleman.&quot;<br /> IX.—A Pending Copyright Action.<br /> In the Chancer; Division yesterday Mr. Justice Stirling<br /> had before him the case of Boosey v. White, brought before<br /> the judge by Mr. Butcher, Q C. Mr. Butcher said that the<br /> point raised in the case was a novel and interesting one.<br /> The plaintiff had certain songs, the copyright of which was<br /> vested in bim. The defendant, it was alleged, had been<br /> using and copying the songs by means of perforated sheets<br /> of cardboard, which correctly reprodnoed the music, and all<br /> people had to do «as to turn the handle of the organ in<br /> which the sheets were placed. That process, he suggested,<br /> amounted to an infringement of the Copyright Laws. There<br /> was a good deal of evidence to prepare, and as Mr. Monlton,<br /> Q.C., who represented the defendant, was willing to treat<br /> the motion as the trial of the action he would consent to the<br /> motion standing over for the present. The motion accord-<br /> ingly stood over until a future day.<br /> The above cutting has been taken from the<br /> Daily Graphic of Dec. 17, 1898. Those who<br /> are interested in copyright will look forward to<br /> the settlement of the action when it comes before<br /> the courts.<br /> PARIS NOTES.<br /> HENCEFORWAED Normandy can boast<br /> a national litterateur! M. Jean Revel,<br /> whose name is well known in the<br /> Parisian world of letters, has just produced an<br /> exquisite little volume of Norman tales, entitled<br /> &quot;Rustres,&quot; several of which are entirely written<br /> in the Bas-Normaiid patois. On perusing this<br /> work (published by Fasquelle, ed. Bibliotheque-<br /> Charpentier) one feels that the author himself is<br /> truly a son of the people he describes so faith-<br /> fully and tenderly, and the most trivial details of<br /> local traditions and characteristics it affords arc<br /> rendered interesting by the artistic talent of the<br /> writer.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 179 (#191) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &#039;79<br /> M. Gustave Revel&#039;s proposal to establish a<br /> Chair of Dramatic Literature at the Sorbonne is<br /> by no means relished by the majority of his<br /> countrymen, who—while strenuously objecting to<br /> the 10,000 francs thus added to their annual<br /> taxes—maintain, with reason, that this depart-<br /> ment is already well represented in the literary<br /> curriculum of their great national institution.<br /> We subjoin the names of the professors especially<br /> qualified to lecture on dramatic literature and<br /> the subjects they will this year undertake, in<br /> order that our readers may judge for themselves.<br /> They are as follows:—<br /> M. Emile Deschanel, who will instruct his<br /> hearers on French dramatic literature, as illus-<br /> trated by Corneille, Racine, and Victor Hugo;<br /> M. Gaston Bossier, who undertakes the Latin<br /> dramatic literature, as exemplified by Plautus<br /> and Terence; M. Maurice Croiset, who will<br /> lecture weekly on &quot;L&#039;Histoire de la Tragedie<br /> Grecque&quot;; M. Louis Leger, who is responsible<br /> for the Slavic tongues and literature; M. Barbier<br /> de Meynard, who is a proficient savant in all<br /> matters pertaining to the Arabic theatre; MM.<br /> Edouard Chavannes and Maurice Courant,<br /> than whom no better authorities on the Chinese<br /> theatre exist; M. Morel Fatio, who initiates<br /> his audience weekly into the mysteries of the<br /> &quot;Theatre de Tirso de Molina &quot;; M. Gazier, who<br /> analyses &quot;Moliere&quot; each Wednesday, while M.<br /> Beljaine pefonns the same friendly office for<br /> &quot;Shakespeare&quot; on the Thursday; M. Larroumet,<br /> who conscientiously expounds on Fridays &quot; L&#039;His-<br /> toire de la Tragedie Fran9aise dans le Theatre de<br /> Racine,&quot; and M. Gebhart, who undertakes the<br /> &quot;Theatre Espagnol &quot; every Monday. Apart from<br /> this, there are the lectures given at the Odeon,<br /> Bodiniere, and the Mathurius—where the play,<br /> or representation, follows the dissertation, like the<br /> jam after the pill. A Chair of Dramatic Litera-<br /> ture likewise exists at the Conservatoire; but yet<br /> —oh Heavens! M. Revel considers the rising<br /> French generation requires further dramatic<br /> instruction.<br /> The name of M. Alexandre Hepp heads the<br /> army of illustrious contributors to the newly-<br /> founded Revue des Rhumatisants. Among the<br /> list we remark the names of Francois Coppee,<br /> Jules Claretie, Marcel Prevot, Armand Silvestre,<br /> Aurclieu Scholl, Emile Bergerat, Leon Daudet,<br /> Le General du Barail, and a host of other witty,<br /> scientific, and political confreres, who all alike<br /> suffer from the same insidious complaint, and<br /> desire to ease their woes by confiding their suffer-<br /> ings and their pet remedies to a mirth-loving<br /> public.<br /> Another literary association—La Societe Pierre<br /> Dupout—has just been founded at Lyons, to pre-<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> serve and bring once more into vogue the works<br /> of the dead poet, Pierre Dupont. Despite his<br /> undoubted genius and popularity, this gifted<br /> singer of the people, this true child of Nature,<br /> lived and died a poor man. The pretty tale of<br /> his introduction to Victor Hugo is too well known<br /> to need repetition here; and the effort to replace<br /> the banal and often obscene ditties of the Parisian<br /> concert hall by the introduction of the melodious<br /> verse of Pierre Dupont is a step in the right<br /> direction.<br /> That indefatigable writer, M. Jules Verne, has<br /> now published his eightieth volume for the amuse-<br /> ment and instruction of youth. Some critics<br /> affirm that the &quot; Superbe Orcnoque&quot; is inferior to<br /> many of his preceding works; but, when an<br /> author has the linn intention to produce no fewer<br /> than a hundred volumes—when, above all, he has<br /> provided his generation for almost half a century<br /> with a healthy and pure literature in a country<br /> whore a healthy and pure literature is, unhappily,<br /> the exception rather than the rule—he can afford<br /> to snap his fingers at the critics, secure of the<br /> gratitude and support of a wide circle of readers.<br /> The popularity of M. Andre Laurie, who belongs<br /> to the same school in a modified degree, is also<br /> steadily increasing; and this is the more remark-<br /> able, since his tales d*-al chiefly with seminary life<br /> in foreign countries—a fact which should win him<br /> the good graces of the French Colonisation<br /> Society.<br /> M. Paul Bourget has quitted Paris to establish<br /> himself for the winter at Costebella, near Hyeres,<br /> the place where he last year wrote &quot;La Duchesse<br /> Bleue,&quot; the great literary success of the season.<br /> His departure was delayed in order to enable him<br /> to take part in the recent Academic election, which<br /> bestowed on the spirituel Henri Lavedan the<br /> fauteuil vacated by the death of poor Henri<br /> Meilhac. M. Emile Zola figured, as usual, among<br /> the unsuccessful candidates. There is something<br /> impressive and heroic in his obstinate determina-<br /> tion to accept no defeat as final. He is the modern<br /> Prometheus eternally debarred from entering the<br /> erudite Olympus of his desires, which at the<br /> present moment boasts five novelists, five dramatic<br /> authors, seven historians, two critics, three poets,<br /> and two journalists among its list of illustrious<br /> members.<br /> The identity of one of the above-mentioned five<br /> novelists has become so completely merged in the<br /> personality of the hero of his popular romance,<br /> that his real name is absolutely forgotten by the<br /> general public. Thus, when M. Pierre Loti was<br /> this month elected to deliver the annual oration<br /> on the occasion of the presentation of the prix de<br /> vertu, his brother Academicians were rather at a<br /> loss how to announce the fact to the outside<br /> v<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 180 (#192) ############################################<br /> <br /> i8o<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> world. Should the real name of the orator be<br /> printed (according to time-honoured custom) they<br /> foresaw the invidious storm of criticism which<br /> would greet the supposed innovation before the<br /> matter could be satisfactorily explained; yet to<br /> deviate a hair&#039;s breadth from the ordinary-<br /> routine was beneath both the dignity and the<br /> altitude of the Immortals! The difficulty was<br /> finally solved by ingeniously addiug the latter<br /> half of the pseudonym to the original patronymic.<br /> Thus many of M. Pierre Loti&#039;s friends and<br /> admirers were greatly surprised to see him figure<br /> under the name of M. Loti-Viaud on the Academy<br /> bills; and still more so to find that the brilliant<br /> author&#039;s real name was Julien Viaud. Apropos<br /> of this subject, we may mention that M. Pierre<br /> Loti&#039;s latest work, &quot;Judith Renaudin,&quot; which is<br /> now being performed at the Theatre Antoine, has<br /> not attained the high level of popular success that<br /> was anticipated. The dainty, idyllic muse of<br /> Pierre Loti is, perhaps, too ethereal for the glare<br /> of the footlights; the successful fin-de-sihcle<br /> dramatist must either possess transcendent<br /> dramatic verve and inspiration, or, at least, an<br /> inexhaustible fund of a certain genre of super-<br /> ficial wit, a ready repartee, and a dashing, devil-<br /> may-care style which carries away and electrifies<br /> an audience, which invariably prefers the thrill<br /> of a new sensation to the discovery of a new<br /> truth.<br /> M. Saint Marceaux has just finished his<br /> plaster cast of the monument to bc erected to<br /> Alphonse Daudet. It represents the great writer<br /> as sitting beneath an olive tree with clasped<br /> hands, in a reflective attitude. The site the<br /> sculptor desires for his work is the Garden of the<br /> Luxembourg, near the monuments of Sainte<br /> Bouve and de Watteau, within easy walking<br /> distance of the great national rest ing place raised<br /> uii.t grands hommes par Jti pat He reconnaissance 1<br /> Daruacotte Dene.<br /> FROM THE AMERICAN PAPERS.<br /> AN interesting observation on what he calls<br /> &quot;the new English attitude towards us&quot; is<br /> made by Dr. Talcott Williams it propos a<br /> book on America entitled &quot;Land of Contrasts,&quot;<br /> written by Mr. James Fullarton Muirhead, which<br /> has just been brought out. Books on America<br /> by the travelling Englishman, says Dr. Williams<br /> (writing in Book News), &quot; were once all unfavour-<br /> able, now they are all the other way, and English<br /> newspaper criticism is moving in the same direc-<br /> tion.&quot; (It might, by the way, be pointed out to<br /> Dr. Williams that American newspaper criticism<br /> is meeting this spirit half-way with correspond-<br /> ingly favourable consideration of England.) Mr.<br /> Muirhead has studied American life for twenty<br /> years, and his book is described as a close, keen,<br /> penetrating analysis of the current play of<br /> American forces. &quot;It is hopeful. All the books<br /> by people who really understand this country are<br /> hopeful.&quot; &quot;The truth is,&quot; says Dr. Talcott<br /> Williams, &quot; we have pimples for the same reason<br /> as a growing boy or girl—because we have not<br /> digested our hasty meals of new population.&quot;<br /> The Boston Public Library (says the New<br /> York Critic) has accepted from Miss Lilian<br /> Whiting the gift of a large collection of the<br /> autograph letters written to the late Kate Field by<br /> the Brownings, Walter Savage Landor, George<br /> Eliot, Dickens, Thomas Adolphus and Anthony<br /> Trollope, E. C. Stedman, Helen Hunt, Mme.<br /> Ristori, Adelaide Phillips, Dr. Schliemann, and a<br /> great number of other notable people. These are<br /> called &quot;The Kate Field Memorial Collection.&quot;<br /> Before Miss Whiting sailed for Europe last<br /> spring she had typewritten copies made of all<br /> these for reference in preparing the biography of<br /> Miss Field, giving the originals to the Public<br /> Library. With the collection there is to be<br /> placed a reproduction of the portrait of Kate<br /> Field by Vedder, signed by him, the original of<br /> which is in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.<br /> The Critic is associating itself with Messrs.<br /> G. P. Putnam&#039;s Sons, the well-known publishers,<br /> beginning with the January number. Mr. and<br /> Miss Gilder of course retain the editorship, and<br /> they are to signalise the change by giving their<br /> influential journal a new dress and new tvpe.<br /> Mr. Charles Belmont Davis, lately the U.S.<br /> Consul at Florence, has allied himself with Mr.<br /> R. H. Russell, the publisher—the latter taking<br /> charge of the art and other books,and Mr.Davis, in<br /> another street, taking the plays. Mr. Davis is a<br /> brother of Mr. Richard Harding Davis, and<br /> published his first volume of short stories only<br /> the other day through Messrs. Stone.<br /> Mr. Cable has been engaged, since his return<br /> from England, on a story of the Civil War, in<br /> which we may expect to have some of his own<br /> experiences on the Southern side. Most of the<br /> scenes will be laid in New Orleans, and the title<br /> will probably be &quot;The Cavalier.&quot; James Lane<br /> Allen also has another novel in hand, which will<br /> be longer than his very successful &quot;The Choir<br /> Invisible.&quot; It may be looked for in the spring.<br /> Mr. Stanley Waterloo&#039;s reason for writing his<br /> latest book, &quot;Armageddon,&quot; is interesting to<br /> know. &quot;I believe,&quot; he says in Book News, &quot; there<br /> will be some sort of union of the Teuton stock,<br /> including the English shaking, the German and<br /> the Norse, and I want it. I believe there will yet<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 181 (#193) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 181<br /> be devised some more or less practicable way of<br /> mounting above the earth and directing move-<br /> ments there. It occurred to me that the two<br /> ideas might be made to assist each other in a<br /> story. Of course the tale as told is not such an<br /> expression as I would make were I a statesman.<br /> It implies antagonisms which are exaggerated for<br /> the purpose of the novelist.&quot;<br /> Messrs. Appleton have published a &quot; limited&quot;<br /> edition (i 00,000 copies) of Mr. Hall Caine&#039;s &quot; The<br /> Christian&quot; at fifty cents. This cheap edition was<br /> resolved upon to meet a special demand. It was<br /> all taken up before it left the press.<br /> The Dial has been discussing the swing of the<br /> pendulum towards romanticism, and sums up by<br /> saying that&quot; the romantic revival is at full tide,<br /> and contemporary literature bids fair to offer us<br /> once more the solace that it brought us of old. We<br /> have learned that it is extremely foolish to insist<br /> of a writer that he give us all the facts con-<br /> nected with his theme. We have learned the<br /> limitations of literary photography, we have<br /> learned that it is unwise to approach literature<br /> burdened with a sense of responsibility for the<br /> preservation of the literal truth and the obtrusion<br /> of the ethical meaning.&quot;<br /> The ^Vew York Tunes in a recent issue prints<br /> this touching little incident of American author-<br /> ship :—<br /> It is related of Mr. F. Marion Crawford, the novelist, that<br /> when he was making a tour of America, and was travelling<br /> through a rich agricultural region to fill an appointment at<br /> a large town, a brisk-looking young man, with his hat on<br /> the back of his head, came into a car in which the novelist<br /> was sitting, held ont his hand, and said, in a most affable<br /> and companionable way:<br /> &quot;I presume this is the celebrated Mr. Crawford?&quot;<br /> &quot;My name is Crawford,&quot; replied the novelist.<br /> &quot;The conductor told me you were aboard,&quot; rejoined the<br /> other. &quot;Allow me to introduce myself. My name is<br /> Higgs. I am somewhat in the book-line myself, and I know<br /> how it goes.&quot;<br /> &quot;Yon are an author?&quot; said Mr. Crawford. &quot;I am glad<br /> to meet yon.&quot;<br /> &quot;Yes, I have published a book regularly every year since<br /> 1890.&quot;<br /> &quot;May I ask the name of yonr latest book,&quot; asked Mr.<br /> Crawford.<br /> &quot;It&#039;s the Premium List of the Jones County Agricul-<br /> tural Fair,&quot; cordially responded Mr. Higgs, taking a small<br /> pamphlet from his pocket and handing it to him. &quot;Allow<br /> me to present you a copy of it. I am the Secretary of the<br /> Jones County Agricultural Board. We are going to have<br /> the best fair this year we ever had. Balloon ascensions,<br /> Koman chariot races, baseball games, and trials of speed<br /> on track till you can&#039;t rest. Come and spend a day with us<br /> and it shan&#039;t cost you a cent. Well, this is where I get off.<br /> Good-bye, Mr. Crawford. Glad to have met you.&quot;<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> ACOR1IESPONPENT sends a letter on tln.<br /> conduct of a prize competition by a popu-<br /> lar magazine. Such a competition does<br /> not fall within the range of the Society&#039;s work<br /> and aims. It does not, that is to say, represent<br /> literary property in any sense. There is no doubt<br /> that these competitions interest vast multitudes of<br /> people, and that they should be conducted with the<br /> most jealous regard to openness and fairness. But<br /> complaints concerning the conduct of these things<br /> cannot be admitted in these columns.<br /> The editors of the New York Outlook invited<br /> their subscribers and readers on Oct. 1 to draw<br /> up lists of the ten best books published in the<br /> year ending Sept. 30, 1898. The following is the<br /> list now published in the December number.<br /> &quot;Life of Tennyson.&quot;<br /> &quot;Helbeck of Bannisdale.&#039;&#039; By Mrs. Humphry Ward.<br /> &quot;Story of Gladstone&#039;s Life.&quot; By Justin McCarthy.<br /> &quot;Caleb West.&quot; By F. Hopkinson Smith.<br /> &quot;The Workers.&quot; By Walter A. Wyckoff.<br /> &quot;Bismarck.&quot; By Dr. Moritz Busch.<br /> &quot;Penelope&#039;s Progress.&quot; By Kate Douglas Wiggin.<br /> &quot;Letters of Elizabeth Barrett Browning.&quot;<br /> &quot;Rupert of Hontzau.&quot; By Anthony Hope.<br /> &quot;Old Virginia and Her Neighbours.&quot; By Jchn Fiske.<br /> Here we find five English books, four American,<br /> and one German. Four of the books are of<br /> exceptional interest. It is not often that bio-<br /> graphies of such importance as those of Tennyson,<br /> Gladstone, Bismarck, and Elizabeth Barrett<br /> Browning appear in one year. Had it not been<br /> for these we should not, probably, have seen a<br /> preponderance of our own books. One would<br /> like to know something of the books to which<br /> must be accorded a &quot; proxime accessit.&quot;<br /> The death of Mr. William Black removes a<br /> figure of importance in the world of letters. He<br /> had of late somewhat fallen behind his former<br /> popularity: but there was always a wide circle of<br /> readers for everything he produced. He began<br /> life by studying art: he then entered journalism,<br /> and was for a time a war correspondent: he<br /> began writing novels in 1869, since which time he<br /> has published the respectable number of thirty-<br /> three. His fir.-t success was in 1871 with &quot; A<br /> Daughter of Heth.&quot; A story has been going round<br /> the papers to the effect that the novel was brought<br /> out anonymously in order to avoid the malignity<br /> of the Saturday Review, which &quot; always &quot; slated<br /> him. There had been no more than two novels to<br /> slate, not enough to justify this sweeping asser-<br /> tion. Everybody knows the leading character-<br /> istic of Black&#039;s style : he had very considerable<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 182 (#194) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> descriptive powers: he took his readers into the<br /> Highlands and the Hebrides. He brought his<br /> heroines into situations of strong contrasts: he<br /> was always gentle and well-bred. It would be<br /> interesting to know which of Black&#039;s novels the<br /> public will select for the limited immortality<br /> which awaits even the most popular novelist.<br /> He was a retiring man for the most part, who was<br /> yet fond of society of his own choosing and of his<br /> own friends. The cause of his death seems to<br /> have been some affection of the brain.<br /> The Pall Mall Gazette quotes the suggestion<br /> that booksellers should appoint their own reader.<br /> &quot;It is obvious,&quot; the writer says, &quot; the gentleman<br /> with the very moderate salary &quot; — .£400 a year<br /> was named —&quot; would, if his report was taken<br /> seriously, make or unmake almost any book. If<br /> the booksellers do not order a book what chance<br /> has it of winning recognition? Surely every<br /> publishers&#039; reader makes it his business to con-<br /> sider whether a book is likely to sell, and I do<br /> not see why the booksellers&#039; man should be any<br /> better judge.&quot; It also says that the appoint-<br /> ment of such a reader &quot;would reduce the in-<br /> flueuceof newspaper critics to an amazing degree.&quot;<br /> Several points occur in this criticism. (1) Do<br /> newspaper critics write for the booksellers or for<br /> the public? I have always given them credit for<br /> writing for the public, in other words, for con-<br /> sidering the literary and not the commercial side<br /> of literature. As I have pointed out over and<br /> over again, there is no necessary connection<br /> between the two. (2) The chief function of the<br /> reader would be to pick out and recommend<br /> from the books whose subjects or whose authors<br /> do not carry certain popularity with them. (3)<br /> He might undoubtedly make a book; book-<br /> sellers would be greatly helped by his reports;<br /> and authors as well. Observe, however, that if<br /> his recommendations fell into disrepute or into<br /> suspicion he would be most certainly sacked. (4)<br /> About the publishers&#039; reader. Booksellers do<br /> not trust the publishers&#039; reader. They point<br /> to their shelves full of failures, and they<br /> refuse to trust the publishers&#039; reader. Why,<br /> everyone knows dozens of stories of publishers&#039;<br /> readers and their mistakes. The best publishers&#039;<br /> reader is, in many cases, the publisher himself.<br /> Now, in reading a MS., the best reader in the<br /> world is liable to make mistakes. But the book-<br /> sellers&#039; reader may also make mistakes? He may:<br /> but he comes after the other reader, and he reads<br /> a printed page, which is better than writing or<br /> typewriting. Further, there are multitudes of<br /> books which the publishers&#039; reader never sees,<br /> notably the books published by the author at his<br /> own expense. The writer of the paragraph in the<br /> Pall Mall Gazette does not consider, I am afraid,<br /> the very serious position of the bookselling trade<br /> at this moment: the precarious standing of book-<br /> sellers, and the absolute necessity for doing some-<br /> thing for them. In The Author for October we<br /> set forth a scale showing the respective shares in<br /> the profits of a book taken by author, publisher,<br /> and bookseller. On an average six-shilling<br /> book, if the author had fifteen per cent., the shares<br /> would be: author, i0±d.; publisher, is. 7\d.;<br /> bookseller, 8§rf. This hardly means a division<br /> according to the strictest principles of equity or<br /> the nicest sense of honour.<br /> At a meeting of a publishing company the<br /> other day, one of the shareholders said that the<br /> management had no right to gamble with the<br /> shareholders&#039; money by publishing any book that<br /> was not absolutely certain to sell. He did not go<br /> on to inform the meeting how the management<br /> were to get enough books of that kind. There<br /> are, for instance, hundreds of writers whose books<br /> carry no risk of loss, though some of them bring<br /> very little profit. I suppose that it is impossible<br /> for a publisher to carry on his business without<br /> risk of some kind; under that head it has been<br /> often defined in these columns. It is the diffe-<br /> rence between the cost of production and the first<br /> subscription. The difference is not generally<br /> great: frequently it is nominal.<br /> Two publishing companies have recently held<br /> their annual meeting. One of them is about a<br /> quarter of a century old, the other is four or five<br /> years of age. The former declares no dividend:<br /> the latter pays a dividend of 22\ per cent. The<br /> chairman of the former laments that &quot;the<br /> difficulties of the publishing trade are many<br /> and serious.&quot; The report of the other says<br /> nothing about difficulties, but speaks of success<br /> upon success. Now, in the case of the first<br /> there are special reasons which have for some<br /> years operated against the success of the com-<br /> pany, but still it is time that these difficulties<br /> should have been got over. In the case of the<br /> second company, it is directed by a man who<br /> possesses a remarkable power of understanding<br /> what people want. This is, in fact, the most<br /> important qualification in a managing director—<br /> to know what people want. One sees in every list<br /> of new books a certain number which people do<br /> not want. An intelligent publisher may be<br /> &quot;spotted&quot; by the absence of such books in his<br /> list; and a small dividend may assuredly be the<br /> direct result of publishing what the world does<br /> not want.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 183 (#195) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &#039;83<br /> Mr. Daldy has been making another wail about<br /> American copyright. He wrote to the Times and<br /> suggested that this was a favourable moment to<br /> make another appeal to the Americans. Well,<br /> with a Copyright Commission still sitting, with a<br /> Copyright Bill still on the stocks, with no certainty<br /> whether the Lords mean to proceed with the Bill,<br /> &gt;t seems as if a more inopportune moment could<br /> hardly be chosen. But it advertises Mr. Daldy,<br /> which is, of course, the main point. Mr. Daldy<br /> goes on .to state that the manufacturing clause<br /> debars four-fifths of the books published in this<br /> country. It is to be hoped that no American will<br /> read this statement, for if anything in the world<br /> could reconcile him to the present arrangement it<br /> is the reflection that if it were abolished the<br /> whole of the books published in this country—<br /> think of it—the whole !—would be poured into<br /> the States! As it is, it is not possible to agree<br /> with Mr. Daldy that one-fifth of all our books<br /> secure American copyright: more likely—one-<br /> tenth. Does Mr. Daldy imagine that there is no<br /> literature in America? Does he believe that the<br /> Americans crave for everything that we publish?<br /> If so, he must have arrived at a very remarkable<br /> depth of ignorance. Moreover, the present clause<br /> does not debar any book that the American wants.<br /> It is a simple condition that the book should be<br /> printed in America. The only hardship is the<br /> additional cost of setting up, which in a book on<br /> demand is not of much importance. But suppose<br /> the clause abolished, and in its place the same<br /> clause that we have here, of simultaneous publica-<br /> tion—what would happen? Books that the<br /> Americans want—and none other—would be sent<br /> over either in stereo plates or in sheets. Just as<br /> at present, it would be necessary to find a pub-<br /> lisher and to submit the work in advance. In<br /> fact, nothing would be saved except the cost<br /> of setting-up, and against that would be placed<br /> the stereo plates. And Mr. Daldy&#039;s &quot;four-<br /> fifths&quot; would remain, as at present, deprived of<br /> their valuable copyright by an unappreciative<br /> public. It is a pity that we have not reciprocity;<br /> but the clause, after all, is a very small thing, and<br /> only troublesome in the case of books about which<br /> there is doubt whether they shall be taken or not.<br /> Have my readers forgotten the proposed<br /> memorial to Felicia Hemans? It is only a<br /> small amount that is wanted: about .£135 is<br /> already promised, and I learn that the committee<br /> are anxious to close the fund. Those, therefore,<br /> who have promised but not yet paid are invited<br /> to do so without delay; and those who have not<br /> sent anything should do so at once to Mr. A.<br /> Theodore Brown, treasurer of the fund, Exehange-<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> court, Liverpool. It is suggested that the memo-<br /> rial shall take the form of au annual prize for a<br /> lyrical poem, the prize-winner to be a student in<br /> Liverpool College.<br /> For my own part I like not prize poems: no<br /> really fine poem was ever obtained in this way.<br /> I should have preferred an annual examination in<br /> English literature open to all comers under a<br /> certain age.<br /> Should librarians buy review books? The<br /> question was raised recently at a meeting of the<br /> Library Assistants&#039; Association. The discussion<br /> was begun by Mr. Dyer, who attacked the practice<br /> of librarians in purchasing review copies of books,<br /> defaced with various stamps embossed or im-<br /> pressed, and also with pencil marks, &amp;c., consider-<br /> ing that ratepayers might well ask him how money<br /> came to be expended on books marked &quot; with the<br /> Publisher&#039;s compliments.&quot;&#039; He considered it an<br /> injustice to the author that public money should<br /> be spent on books thit are given away, not sold,<br /> and that booksellers should not be allowed to sell<br /> these books any more than Baron Tauchnitz&#039;s<br /> publications. Mr. Wood strongly supported the<br /> purchase of review copies, as the stamps did not<br /> matter. Did not libraries themselves deface<br /> books? and did an extra defacement matter&#039;t<br /> What a librarian wanted was cheap books, and<br /> review copies were cheap, and new, and good;<br /> therefore these should be bought. Mr. Thome<br /> and Mr. Vellenoweth defended the exclusion of<br /> these cheap but defaced books, the latter asking<br /> how readers could be forbidden to make pencil<br /> marks, &amp;c., in books already so marked, as review<br /> copies often were.<br /> The opinion of the meeting seemed to be in<br /> favour of buying review books because they are<br /> cheap, while the members present refused to listen<br /> to the principle involved. Now, there are 700 free<br /> libraries in this country, and the number of copies<br /> sent out for review is not more than fifty as a<br /> rule. If, out of the fifty, thirty are offered for<br /> sale, that leaves 670 libraries which must buy<br /> direct. It is not therefore a burning question or an<br /> intolerable burden. Yet one would like the<br /> matter settled. Ought libraries, as a matter of<br /> principle, to buy those review copies? Thev get<br /> them very cheap; they may be sometimes marked<br /> a little, and it cannot be said that the sale is<br /> underhand. Many reviewers have the book in<br /> addition to the cheque. When the latter is small<br /> the book is thrown in as some compensation, and<br /> it is understood that it will be sold.<br /> Walter Bbsant.<br /> x<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 184 (#196) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> THE PUBLISHER, THE BOOKSELLER, AND<br /> THE LIBRARIAN.<br /> THIS is the title of an unconventional article<br /> in the &quot; Christmas Catalogue,&quot; published<br /> from the office of the Newsagent and Book-<br /> seller&#039;s Review. The writer in the first place<br /> discusses the cheapening of literature, and prophe-<br /> sies that &quot;the 6*. novel will soon have to give<br /> place to 2*., and the author, who is now paid<br /> huge and disproportionate sums of money for his<br /> MS., will have to be content with a more modest-<br /> sum and a smaller royalty. The publisher, then,<br /> who can look ahead, and who is bold enough to<br /> enter the arena, will have no cause to regret it,<br /> for although the task may be heavy, he will most<br /> assuredly win fame and fortune.&quot; Then follows<br /> a lament that the libraries have not of late years<br /> teen helping the publisher to the extent that is<br /> naturally expected, for if the author&#039;s name<br /> happens to be a new one, he is passed by. The<br /> section of the article devoted to publishers con-<br /> cludes as follows:<br /> The publishing world should be considered more in the<br /> light of a charitable combination, for if the publisher did<br /> not risk his money to introduce new authors, a very pre-<br /> cious few would ever see themselves clothed in fresh ink,<br /> newspaper, and gorgeous binding.<br /> The article then passes to the bookseller, the<br /> writer admitting that the publisher cannot exist<br /> without him; remarking his ignorance as to the<br /> books he sells, compared with the bookseller of the<br /> &quot;old times,&quot; and deploring the small pay of the<br /> bookseller&#039;s assistant. A &quot;new departure&quot; at<br /> the biggest circulating library in London is noted,<br /> and this, says the writer, is a matter in which<br /> the publisher should step in and put his foot<br /> down. This is it:—<br /> As soon as books can be withdrawn from circulation (and<br /> they are often withdrawn much too soon) they are re-bound,<br /> cleaned, and sold for half the published price! This, then,<br /> clearly is not helping the poor bookseller. There will be<br /> lots of people who will wait for these oopies, and thereby save<br /> a matter of is. 6d. on a book, to the loss of the bookseller.<br /> Again, as to the position of the new author,<br /> and giving him a better chance, it is suggested<br /> &quot;that the two large Metropolitan libraries<br /> relegate a couple or more of competent literary<br /> critics to a room set apart for the examination of<br /> new books—advance copies being sent them by<br /> the publishers for that purpose—and upon the<br /> report of these critics, the new writer would be<br /> judged according to his merits.&quot;<br /> As for the librarian, to him is imputed want<br /> of enteqmse. &quot;The London librarian is one of<br /> the most important men in English literary<br /> circles, but it is extremely doubtful if he has ever<br /> risen to, or taken advantage of, his opportunities.<br /> The libraries of London are dead,&quot; &amp;c.<br /> &quot;MERLIN AND THE GLEAM.&quot;<br /> IHAVE waited for the Life of Tennyson<br /> to throw some light on a small Tennyson<br /> puzzle—why the poet chose to represent<br /> Merlin, the bard and wizard of the Arthur<br /> legends, as following &quot;The Gleam.&quot; Now the<br /> book has come, and upon this point I am as<br /> unsatisfied as ever.<br /> The preface gives a delightfully interesting<br /> study of the poem, and some explanation of Tenny-<br /> son&#039;s feeling for the wizard. &quot;From his boy-<br /> hood he had felt the magic of Merlin—that<br /> spirit of poetry—which bade him know his power<br /> and follow throughout his work a pure and high<br /> ideal . . . which helped him through doubt<br /> and difficulties to &#039;endure as seeing Him who is<br /> invisible.&#039;&quot; Then the connection with &quot;The<br /> Gleam&quot; appears to be traced in Vol. II., p. 366,<br /> where we find the note :—<br /> &quot;Of Merlin and the Gleam, written in August,<br /> 1889, he [Tennyson] says, &#039; In the story of Merlin<br /> and Nimue I have read that Nimue means the<br /> Gleam—which in my poem typifies the higher<br /> poetic imagination.&quot;<br /> But Nimue had already been treated by Tenny-<br /> son in &quot;Merlin and Vivien,&quot; and with no<br /> more respect than was shown in Malory&#039;s chapter<br /> upon &quot;How Merlin was assorted, and doted on<br /> one of the ladies of the lake, and how he was<br /> shut in a rock under a stone, and there died.&quot;<br /> Take the ending of this poem :—<br /> For Merlin, overtalk&#039;d and overworn,<br /> Had yielded, told her all the charm, and slept.<br /> Then, in one moment, she put forth the charm<br /> Of woven paces and of waving hands,<br /> And in the hollow oak he lay as dead,<br /> And lost to life and use and name and fame.<br /> Then crying, &quot; I have made his glory mine,&quot;<br /> And shrieking out &quot; O fool!&quot; the harlot leapt<br /> Adown the forest, and the thicket closed<br /> Behind her, and the forest echo&#039;d &quot;fool.&quot;<br /> Can this wicked little will-of-the-wisp represent<br /> the spirit of poetry? The close of &quot; Merlin and<br /> the Gleam&quot; quite forbids one to believe it.<br /> I can no longer,<br /> But die rejoicing,<br /> For through the magic<br /> Of Him the Mighty,<br /> Who taught me in childhood,<br /> There on the border<br /> Of boundless ocean,<br /> And all but in Heaven<br /> Hovers the Gleam.<br /> It is hard to think this lovely moral has grown<br /> from the Nimue of Malory&#039;s tale!<br /> I shall be bold enough, at any rate, to make<br /> another suggestion. Newman, when asked about<br /> the angel faces in &quot; Lead kindly Light.&quot; frankly<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 185 (#197) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> confessed that he had forgotten what he meant<br /> by them. Tennyson himself for the moment may<br /> have mistaken the origin of his Gleam. We<br /> know he was a student of Dante. The &quot;sorrow&#039;s<br /> crown of sorrows&quot; passage is only one of many<br /> delicate enrichments from that source; and, in<br /> Canto XIII. of the &quot;Purgatorio,&quot; we find this<br /> allusion: Sapia describes how, &quot;waxing out of<br /> bounds &quot; in gladness after a victory, she lifted up<br /> her brow,<br /> And, like the merlin cheated by a gleam,<br /> Cried, &quot;It is over. Heav&#039;n! I fear thee not.&quot;<br /> Cary&#039;s Translation.<br /> A note explains the reference:<br /> &quot;Canto XIII., v. 114.—The story of the Merlin<br /> is that, having been induced by a gleam of fine<br /> weather to escape from his master, he was soon<br /> oppressed by the rigour of the season.&quot;<br /> My theory involves a little confusion between<br /> Merlin the bird and Merlin the man. A bird<br /> following light, a singer reaching after the highest<br /> poetic inspiration—the two ideas would be easily<br /> merged in one another. Bird or poet might fail<br /> of full achievement—strike out too soon for light<br /> and freedom, and find death instead of summer.<br /> But I shall contend, at least, that it was some<br /> transmutation of this bird story in Tennyson&#039;s<br /> mind which suggested the 1889 poem, and that<br /> the wicked little amateur sorceress, whatever her<br /> coincidence of name, had really nothing to do<br /> with it. Mary Colborne-Veel.<br /> New Zealand, 1898.<br /> NAXOS.<br /> When lonely on the once-delightful shore<br /> Stood Ariadne, and the stern wind blew<br /> Steadily seaward, till at last she knew<br /> Theseus could come no more:<br /> Behold! A God, a God rush&#039;d to her side!<br /> —Think yon she cared? I know which way she tnrn&#039;d<br /> Fair eyes, and longing heart, and lips that burn&#039;d;<br /> I know which name she cried!<br /> For now the god-like lot draws near to me;<br /> Yea, Love-of-one denied, oomes Love-for-all.<br /> —But, where art thou? Canst thon not hear me call,<br /> O lost, lost Love! to thee?<br /> B. E. B.<br /> LONDON LIBRARY.<br /> THIS important institution opened on Dec. 5<br /> its new buildings which have been erected<br /> on the old site, St. James&#039;s-square. A<br /> distinguished company came to hear Mr. Leslie<br /> Stephen, the president, declare the new buildings<br /> open. Mr. Stephen in his address explained the<br /> history of the movement—the entire breakdown<br /> of the old buildings, the want of space, the diffi-<br /> culty in finding books, and the lack of a proper<br /> reading room. These difficulties have now been<br /> removed and these wants supplied in a simple<br /> well-lighted airy building. The expense has been<br /> met by .£2000 subscribed among the 2472<br /> members, and a loan of .£5000. Mr. Stephen<br /> described the increase of the library since 1841,<br /> saying that at last there was no way out of the<br /> difficulty but to build or to burst, and, of course,<br /> they had to set about building. The result was<br /> that they had a very great increase of accommo-<br /> dation, and their librarian in future would be in<br /> the position of a general presiding over an<br /> encampment where every regiment had its proper<br /> place, and where he knew where to call on every-<br /> one of his troops. Mr. Stephen said that when he<br /> looked at the great clubs which surrounded them,<br /> and in which he was afraid the kitchen was a<br /> much more important part of the apparatus than<br /> the library, some of his complacency in the new<br /> building departed, and remembering that it was<br /> the only institution of the kind in London which<br /> undertook to give an essential means for the enjoy-<br /> ment of good literature in their own houses, he<br /> thought after all that it was a mere cottage com-<br /> pared with what it ought to be.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I —Book-Buyers and Booksellers.<br /> THE note in the December Author referring to<br /> the possible buyers of books is interesting.<br /> I have often wondered who are the book-<br /> buyers, besides the managers of circulating libraries<br /> and literary men. People with incomes of .£500<br /> a year, and more than that, tell me that they<br /> cannot afford to buy books. In thousands of<br /> big, well-furnished houses one little case, holding<br /> fifty or sixty books, at the outside estimate, is<br /> considered a fair library. Books are the last<br /> things that many wealthy persous dream of buying.<br /> Sometimes they have a two-guinea library ticket.<br /> Very often they beg or borrow books from impe-<br /> cunious friends. It is necessary for a man with<br /> .£1000 a year to economise. These people will<br /> even ask a half-starved author to lend theiu<br /> a copy of his last book, published at 3*. 6d., and<br /> to be bought at 3*?. in the 1 i. discount.<br /> An enormous number of those who neither<br /> toil nor spin can &quot;never find time to read,&quot; and<br /> another multitude &quot;hate reading,&quot; and despise<br /> the writers of books as useless, idle fellows, who<br /> ought to be trying to make money on the Stock<br /> Exchange instead of amusing themselves with<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 186 (#198) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> pen and paper. I have been asked sometimes<br /> by pursy people to recommend a book. They<br /> inquire if I know anyone who will lend it to them.<br /> So far as my experience goes, I am convinced<br /> that the keenest readers and the most liberal<br /> book-buyers are authors. A philosophical writer<br /> known to me, whose income is less than M200 a<br /> year, has thousands of books, many of them costly.<br /> Another scholarly author, who never earned more<br /> than £2 per week, has contrived to fill a study<br /> with volumes. Half of his earnings are spent<br /> upon books.<br /> The other day a well-to-do lady promised to<br /> buy a book in which I was interested. It was in<br /> the press, and the publishers had proposed to issue<br /> it at i*. Subsequently, they changed their minds,<br /> and priced the book at 2*. 6d. The well-to-do<br /> lady also changed her mind about buying the<br /> book. She could not afford more than is. I<br /> believe it would pay publishers to print cheap<br /> books.<br /> Lately, one of the new publishers refused the<br /> manuscript of a novel because it was too short for<br /> the ordinary Volume form of fiction. If the book<br /> would not sell at 2*. 6rf., might it not sell at<br /> is. 6d., and perhaps sell much better at the lower<br /> price?<br /> A word upon booksellers. &quot;The trade&quot; is in<br /> a bad way, and this is partly due to the fact that<br /> so many persons are niggardly in their expendi-<br /> ture upon books. But some booksellers aie<br /> not &quot; pushing&quot;; they cannot expert to succeed.<br /> When the reprint of &quot;The Dolly Dialogues &quot; was<br /> selling in thousands, and lying upon every railway<br /> bookstall, I went into a big book shop at Ply-<br /> mouth and asked for the book. The shopkeeper<br /> said, &quot;I don&#039;t keep dialogues.&quot; I explained<br /> that it was not a theatrical book. &quot;Well, I<br /> haven&#039;t got it, and I&#039;ve never heard of it,&quot;<br /> returned the bookseller, without offering to order<br /> it. On another occasion I tried to buy J. A.<br /> Symonds&#039; &quot;Study of Walt Whitman,&quot; at four<br /> large central shops in London. &quot;No, we haven&#039;t<br /> it,&quot; said the assistants. There was no suggestion<br /> of obtaining a copy. I should have imagined<br /> that a js. 6d. book was worth selling.<br /> I sympathise with booksellers in their struggle<br /> to pay rents and make a living. Many of them<br /> can scarcely live, in spite of energy and enter-<br /> prise; but others come to grief through listless-<br /> ness and neglecting to display and recommend<br /> new books. I was much gratified some time<br /> ago by the kindness of two leading members of<br /> the trade, who both offered to stock my books<br /> when I, as a complete stranger, asked them if<br /> they would do so.<br /> I think that booksellers would welcome cheaper<br /> books, especially works of fiction. Constantly<br /> people tell me that they would buy a new novel<br /> if it only cost 2*. 6d. They refrain from buying<br /> a novel at 4*. 6d., and wait until they can find<br /> someone to lend it to them or until the book is<br /> in the local free library. I believe that authors,<br /> publishers, and booksellers lose in the long run<br /> through fixing the price of a novel too high.<br /> The book is bought by the few, and it may be<br /> read by many; but the majority of readers will<br /> be borrowers, and some of them unabashed and<br /> unblushing wealthy borrowers.<br /> Bryn Aber, Geoffrey Mortimer<br /> Llangollen, North Wales.<br /> II.—Editor and Contributor.<br /> 1.<br /> When an editor keeps a MS. months and<br /> months, wearing out the writer&#039;s patience, and<br /> causing him, in many instances, real distress<br /> of mind, does it not point to a defective sense of<br /> honour in that editor? The author is in his<br /> power, has no redress if his copy becomes lost or<br /> dog-eared, is obliged to bear meekly neglect or<br /> insult, so that, it seems to me, the abuse of his<br /> confidence is very like the non-payment of a debt<br /> of honour. There is obviously no action we who<br /> write can take, but simply sit still and wait for<br /> a reformation of charactor in such doers unto<br /> others as they would not others should do unto<br /> them! Not long ago I wrote to an editor asking<br /> when my story, accepted last May, would be<br /> likely to appear. He did not reply to a letter<br /> and two post-cards, so I wrote for the fourth<br /> time with some irritation. This was the imperti-<br /> nent answer: &quot;I think it a kindness to tell you<br /> that peremptory letters to editors can have but<br /> one result.&quot; Another story accepted last May<br /> was returned in August, and it was only through<br /> the services of Mr. Thring that it is accepted<br /> again now. When it will appear, Heaven knows!<br /> If one dares to beard editorial majesty there can<br /> be but one of two results—malicious delay or<br /> return of the MS. Truly we may pray for<br /> reform of manners.<br /> With regard to the ill-bred person who<br /> scribbles his presumptuous and often illiterate<br /> &quot;corrections&quot; all over another man&#039;s literary pro-<br /> perty (I have experienced this, and shar* Mr.<br /> Wallace&#039;s disgust—see last month&#039;s Author),<br /> he is, of course, so hopelessly void of inborn<br /> courtesy or good taste that nothing could touch<br /> him but being obliged to pay for re-typing.<br /> Surely we can legally claim this if we take the<br /> the trouble; or am I mistaken? M. L. P.<br /> 11.<br /> Most authors, whether of prose or verse, have,<br /> I presume, their little &quot; differences &quot; with editors.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 187 (#199) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 187<br /> 1 have, moreover, occasionally to put up with no<br /> little injustice. My own experiences in this line<br /> have been so numerous that I am tempted to give<br /> a few of them in The Author. I must premise<br /> by saying that I am one of the most courteous<br /> of men myself, and never willingly give offence<br /> to any one. More than that, I am ever ready to<br /> forgive an affront when sorrow is expressed by<br /> the giver of it, and not seldom making the first<br /> overtures even here; and yet in spite of all this<br /> I have at the present moment the following—what<br /> shall we call them ?—say &quot;misunderstandings,&quot;<br /> to put it mildly.<br /> Imprimis.— One of our best known critics<br /> and authors once wrote me in reply to a present<br /> of a volume of my verse a most kind and appre-<br /> ciative letter and highly praised my poetry, rank-<br /> ing me among the sweetest of Devon singers<br /> now alive. Since then, though I wrote him a<br /> most warm and grateful note in reply, I have<br /> never had a line from him, and moreover he has<br /> just curtly declined for his magazine one of the<br /> best poems (in my opinion) I ever wrote! I<br /> have written him more than once without any<br /> response. Why?<br /> Another well-known literary man and poet in<br /> the north, who also highly admired, so he said,<br /> my poetry, suddenly ceased to write to me or to<br /> answer my letters, without any conceivable reason.<br /> Nothing could have been more courteous than my<br /> letter to him. Why?<br /> No. 3 is a west country editor with whom I<br /> had a difference, and though I amply apologised<br /> to him for a hasty letter, up to this day he has<br /> never accepted my apology!<br /> No. 4 is a literary friend now living in London,<br /> who introduced himself to me years ago, has<br /> stayed with me, and now never answers my<br /> letters, without any reason. If they are busy, so<br /> am I, only I am old-fashioned and foolish enough<br /> to forget and forgive and to reply to letters.<br /> Dec. 13. F. B. D.<br /> nr.<br /> Tn your last issue you devote some paragraphs<br /> to the recent decision of Judge Emden at the<br /> Lambeth County Court, and you say that this<br /> case &quot;bears to some extent on the position of an<br /> editor to whom MSS. are sent.&quot;<br /> I should like to point out that this decision is<br /> favourable to authors, and ought to be supported<br /> in every way. Judge Emden laid down that<br /> here the &quot; bailment &quot; was gratuitous; that is, the<br /> &quot;bailee,&quot; or pers m to whom the MS. was<br /> entrusted, had no interest in the matter, and<br /> therefore could not be made responsible unless<br /> shown to have been guilty of gross negligence.<br /> From this argument it logically follows that,<br /> had the &quot;bailee&quot; had an interest in the &quot; bail-<br /> ment&quot; of the MS., he would have been liable, and<br /> the onus would have been shifted on to him to<br /> prove that he had exercised reasonable care in<br /> preserving it.<br /> It appears to me that, in most cases where<br /> MSS. are sent to an editor or a publisher, the<br /> &quot;bailment&quot; is not gratuitous, for the latter has<br /> an interest in the &quot;bailment,&quot; as it is thereby<br /> he is enabled to make selections on which his<br /> business largely dermls. If I am a manu-<br /> facturer, and send goods to a dealer on approval,<br /> he cannot lose them and say he is only a<br /> &quot;gratuitous bailee,&quot; and that you must prove<br /> he has been grossly negligent before you can<br /> claim recompense for the loss of your property.<br /> Why, then, should an editor or publisher claim<br /> this position?<br /> It is true editors sometimes in their advertise-<br /> ments repudiate liability for lost MSS., but it is<br /> by no means certain they can thus evade a<br /> &quot;common law&quot; liability.<br /> Howard v. Harris is somewhat against (his con-<br /> tention. That was a case similar to the one<br /> decided by Judge Emden, but there the play-<br /> wright had sent the MS. straight tu the manager<br /> of the theatre. The decision of the County Court<br /> judge, however, seems to me to have been given<br /> on more intelligible grounds than that of the<br /> higher court.<br /> As the matter is of great importance to authors<br /> where a wanton loss of MSS. has occurred, I<br /> think it might be advisable to test the matter<br /> further.<br /> Major Greenwood, LL.B.,<br /> Barrister-at-Law.<br /> III.—The Society as Publishers.<br /> I notice in the November number that a writer<br /> signing himself &quot;A Member of the Society&quot;<br /> raises a question or suggestion upon the impor-<br /> tant matter of publishing; and there is also a<br /> note on the same by our esteemed &quot; W. B.&quot; The<br /> first-named wishes the Society to undertake the<br /> very much talked-of publishing of books, which<br /> the latter thinks would not be done, suggesting,<br /> as a medium course, that we might, so to speak,<br /> grow a publisher of our own for the purpose.<br /> So far as I can say—and I know a good deal<br /> about authorship, printing, publishing, &amp;c.—I<br /> would think that sin. e both writers (not to speak<br /> of thousands of others) are agreed upon the<br /> desirability of the project, &quot;W. B.&quot; himself<br /> might venture to place the matter before the<br /> Society at an early meeting; and since he is of<br /> opinion that the man procured to publish for<br /> authors at 10 per cent. profit should not be allowed<br /> to undertake other business, what better way is<br /> there than for the Society to procure such a<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 188 (#200) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> man and publish themselves, getting another<br /> manager when death or the 101 things would<br /> cause a single individual to throw up the sponge?<br /> Thus the good work, like the river, even though<br /> men men might come and go, would go on for<br /> ever. W. B. Lappin.<br /> IV.—Fourteen Months&#039; Delay.<br /> May I be allowed to corroborate Mr. Wallace&#039;s<br /> evidence concerning the methods adopted by the<br /> Strand Magazine?<br /> I submitted a short story for the editor&#039;s con-<br /> sideration, and after twelve months had rolled by<br /> I wrote asking for information concerning it.<br /> My letter, however, was ignored, as was a second<br /> (although I enclosed stamped addressed envelope<br /> for reply). In a third letter I informed him that<br /> I should be compelled to make the matter public.<br /> This produced an apology from the sub-editor,<br /> and a statement that he was &quot;holding the story<br /> over in order to bring it to the editor&#039;s notice at a<br /> favourable moment.&quot; Another month passed, and<br /> then the MS. was returned as unsuitable, having<br /> been detained fourteen months.<br /> One of the Rank and File.<br /> [One would like to know how many MSS. were<br /> waiting their turn to be read: and how many<br /> officials were reading them. Without judging<br /> any case, it must always be remembered that<br /> with every popular magazine the pressure of MSS.<br /> is very great—enormous. I should imagine that<br /> the explanation of this case is probably that the<br /> MS. was slipped among others and so was mis-<br /> laid. The writer is naturally—most naturally—<br /> angry, but I would suggest some such explana-<br /> tion.—Ed.].<br /> BOOK TALK.<br /> ME. RIDER HAGGARD has written a new<br /> story of South Africa, entitled, &quot; Swal-<br /> low: A Tale of the &#039; Great Trek.&#039;&quot; It<br /> will be illustrated by Mr. Maurice Greiffenhagen,<br /> and will be published in the spring by Messrs.<br /> Longman.<br /> Mr. David Christie Murray&#039;s new novel, to be<br /> published in the spring by Messrs. Pearson, is<br /> called &quot;Despair&#039;s Last Journey.&quot;<br /> Mr. William Archer has written an introduc-<br /> tion to the English translation of Dr. George<br /> Brandes&#039;s monograph on Ibsen, which Mr. Heine-<br /> mann will publish very soon.<br /> A selection of Robert Louis Stevenson&#039;s letters<br /> to various people will be given by Mr. Sidney<br /> Colvin in Scribner&#039;s Magazine, the first instal-<br /> ment to appear in this month&#039;s number.<br /> Mr. Henry Murray Lane, Chester Herald, is<br /> engaged upon a large genealogical work which<br /> Messrs. A. D. Junes and Co. will publish, entitled<br /> &quot;The Royal Daughters of England.&quot; It will be<br /> a compendium of most of the royal and illus-<br /> trious families of Europe for over 800 years, and<br /> the object with which it is undertaken is to show<br /> who are the actual living representatives of the<br /> sixty princesses, beginning with the daughters<br /> of William the Conqueror, who have issue<br /> surviving to the present day. The work will<br /> run into four volumes.<br /> Mr. F. J. Jackson&#039;s book on the Jaekson-<br /> Harmsworth expedition to the North Pole will<br /> be published by Messrs. Harper in a week or<br /> two. It is the record of three years&#039; adventure<br /> and scientific research, and includes, of course, an<br /> account of the leader&#039;s meeting with Dr. Nansen.<br /> The title of the book is &quot; A Thousand Days in<br /> the Arctic.&quot;<br /> Mr. J. Grego is editing, with notes, a book on<br /> Charles Dickens and his illustrators, which will<br /> be published in two volumes by Messrs. Chapman<br /> and Hall under the title &quot; Pictorial Pickwickiana.&quot;<br /> It will be illustrated with drawings and engrav-<br /> ings by Seymour Leech, &quot; Phiz,&quot; Sir John Gilbert,<br /> R.A., C. R. Leslie, R.A., and others.<br /> Mr. J. W. Headlam, Fellow of King&#039;s College,<br /> Cambridge, is writing for the Cambridge His-<br /> torical Series a volume on the modern German<br /> Empire, 1815-1871.<br /> Mrs. H. J. Tennant and Miss Mona Wilson<br /> have written a handbook entitled &quot;Working<br /> Women in Factories, Workshops, and Laundries,<br /> and How to Help Them.&quot; It will be published<br /> shortly by Messrs. Duckworth and Co.<br /> Herr Charles Neufeld, who was released from<br /> his long imprisonment in Khartoum when the<br /> victorious British troops entered the city, is<br /> writing an account of his experiences during his<br /> long captivity in the stronghold of Mahdism.<br /> Miss Mary Bateson is editing for the Royal<br /> Historical Society &quot;A Narrative of Political<br /> Events, 1765-1767, by the Duke of Newcastle.&quot;<br /> Mr. F. G. Kitten&#039;s forthcoming memoir of Dr.<br /> Buck, formerly organist and master of the<br /> choristers at Norwich Cathedral, will contain new<br /> letters of Jenny Lind, Professor John Hullah,<br /> Professor Sedgwick, Sir Sterndale Bennett, Dean<br /> Stanley, and others. Messrs. Jarrold and Sons<br /> will publish the work.<br /> In the Atlantic Monthly for December Mr.<br /> Pierre la Rose gives a hitherto unpublished poem<br /> by Byron — namely, a version of Ossian&#039;s<br /> &quot;Address to the Sun.&quot; This is accompanied by<br /> many notes on Ossian written by Byron when he<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 189 (#201) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> was about eighteen years of age. The whole of<br /> these—poem and notes—are written in Byron&#039;s<br /> own hand in a copy of the 1806 edition of &quot;The<br /> Poems of Ossian&quot; which is now one of the<br /> treasures of the library of Harvard University.<br /> It came into the possession of the college in 1874,<br /> as part of the bequest of Charles Sumner, who<br /> had acquired it for twenty guineas. Byron at<br /> this time swallowed Macpherson, of whom his<br /> notes show him to be an enthusiastic admirer.<br /> The following are the opening lines of the<br /> poem :—<br /> 0 thou! who rollest in yon azure field,<br /> Bound as the orb of my forefather&#039;s shield,<br /> Whence are thy beams? From what eternal store<br /> Dost thou, O Sun! thy vast effulgence pour?<br /> In awful grandeur, when thou movest on high,<br /> The stars start back and hide them in the sky;<br /> The pale moon sickens in thy brightening blaze,<br /> And in the western wave avoids thy gaze-<br /> Alone thou shinest forth—for who can riso<br /> Companion of thy splendour in tho skies!<br /> Some good literary plums will be ripe next<br /> season (says the Westminster Gazette) to fall<br /> into the hands of those who reprint notable books<br /> as soon as the copyright expires. This season an<br /> example of this sort has been &quot;John Halifax,<br /> Gentleman,&quot; by Mrs. Craik, a charming edition of<br /> which Messrs. Dent have just issued. That very<br /> popular novel has been reprinted by six publishers<br /> at least, besides the six different editions from the<br /> authorised publishers on sale before. In 1899<br /> another portion of Tennyson&#039;s poetry will be out<br /> of copyright; Dr. Livingstone&#039;s first African<br /> travels, issued in 1857; &quot;Tom Brown&#039;s School-<br /> days,&quot; and Borrow&#039;s &quot; Lavengro.&quot;<br /> Sir William Wilson Hunter, K.C.S.I., is writing<br /> a history of British India, which will occupy five<br /> volumes. The first of these, which will carry the<br /> narrative through our struggle for the spice trade<br /> of the Eastern Archipelago and our expulsion by<br /> the Dutch from the Spice Islands, will be published<br /> by Messrs. Longman next month.<br /> The attention of Messrs. A. D. Innes and Co.<br /> has been called to a curious error on the title page<br /> of Mr. Arthur Paterson&#039;s last novel, &quot;The Gospel<br /> Writ in Steel.&quot; He is there credited with the<br /> authorship not only of &quot;A Son of the Plains,&quot;<br /> which he did write, but also of &quot;The Man from<br /> Snowy River,&quot; which is the work of Mr. A. B.<br /> Paterson, an entirely different person. &quot;It does<br /> not appear,&quot; Messrs. Innes say, &quot;that Mr. Pater-<br /> son passed this title-page for press himself.&quot;<br /> The Saturday Review has again changed<br /> hands, the Earl of Hardwicke having acquired the<br /> controlling interest of Mr. Frank Harris. The<br /> new editor will bo Mr. Harold Hodge, barrister,<br /> who is connected with the firm of Sothcby,<br /> Wilkinson, and Hodge, the well-known book<br /> dealers.<br /> Mr. David Williamson is to edit the Puritan,<br /> a new magazine for Free Churchmen, which will<br /> be started shortly, with Mr. Bowden as pub-<br /> lisher.<br /> Mrs. Adeane, author of &quot;The Girlhood of<br /> Maria Holroyd,&quot; is continuing the record of this<br /> lady as Lady Stanley of Alderley in a book to be<br /> published by Messrs. Longman.<br /> Mr. W. M. Rossetti contributes to the<br /> December number of the Pall Mall Magazine<br /> some unpublished fragments by his brother<br /> Dante Gabriel Rossetti.<br /> Mr. Bernard Wentworth, author of &quot;The<br /> Master of Hullingham Manor,&quot; &quot;Anti-Agnosti-<br /> cism,&quot; &amp;c., has been commissioned by Mr. Garnet<br /> Wolseley Cox to write the libretto, in blank verse,<br /> of a new grand opera by Mr. G. W. Cox. Mr.<br /> Wentworth has lately been appointed to the staff<br /> of one of the leading Warwickshire papers, the<br /> Leamington Advertiser. A new short story by<br /> Mr. Wentworth appears in the Christmas number<br /> of that journal, entitled &quot;Estebau Cortes,&quot;<br /> a tale of Spain and the late Spanish-American<br /> war.<br /> &quot;Excursions in Comedy,&quot; a small volume of<br /> dramatic sketches by Mr. William Toyubee, has<br /> just been published by Mr. H. J. Glaisher, of<br /> 57, Wigmore-street, who also announces a volume<br /> of verse by the same author, entitled &quot;On Oaten<br /> Flute,&quot; of which a limited number was privately<br /> printed in 1897.<br /> Their Royal Highnesses the Duchess of York<br /> and the Duchess of Fife have both graciously<br /> accepted copies of a new book for children entitled<br /> &quot;A Story Book for Lesson Time,&quot; or a child&#039;s<br /> first English grammar. The volume has recently<br /> been published by Messrs. Constable and Co.<br /> On the 11th of the current month CasseWs<br /> Saturday Journal will commence the serial pub-<br /> lication of a modern novel of adventure by Mr.<br /> John Bloundelle-Burton, this being the first<br /> present day romance which the author has pro-<br /> duced for ten years. In it Mr. Bloundelle-Burton<br /> returns to the locality of some of his earlier<br /> stories, viz., the region of the West Indies, he<br /> having chosen British Honduras for his scene. It<br /> will be entitled &quot;A Bitter Birthright,&quot; and will<br /> also be produced serially in the United States at<br /> the same time.<br /> &quot;The Cardinal&#039;s Page,&quot; James Baker&#039;s new<br /> novel, was only issued on the 12th November, but<br /> the first edition is gone and a second is now being<br /> sent out.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 190 (#202) ############################################<br /> <br /> 190<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &quot;Divil-May-Care,&quot; a new novel by Miss May<br /> Crommelin, has just been published by Messrs.<br /> F. V. White and Co. This novel deals with<br /> adventures in Ulster, and some of the magic<br /> and folklore of the peasantry, interspersed with<br /> rather sensational, but, as we are assured, true<br /> stories.<br /> &quot;The New Far East,&quot; by Arthur Diosy (Vice-<br /> Chairman of the Council of the Japan Society),<br /> with a map and illustrations from special designs<br /> by Kuboto Beisen, of Tokio, has just been pub-<br /> lished by Messrs. Cassell and Co.<br /> Mr. E. M. Garnier, author of &quot;The History of<br /> the Landed Interest,&#039;&#039; &quot;Annals of the British<br /> Peasantry,&quot; &amp;c., has token to historical fiction,<br /> and Messrs. Harper and Brothers have just pub-<br /> lished for him &quot;His Counterpart,&quot; a romance<br /> dealing with the early life of John Churchill, first<br /> Duke of Marlborough.<br /> A novel, by Mrs. Neville Walford, called &quot; Until<br /> the Dawn,&quot; is now ready for publication, and<br /> will shortlv be issued by Messrs. Chapman and<br /> Hall.<br /> Within three weeks of its publication by<br /> Messrs. Chapman and Hall, a German edition of<br /> Mr. A. Eedcote Dewar&#039;s book, &quot; From Matter to<br /> Man,&quot; was called for. The eminent German<br /> scientist Professor Ludwig Biicherer, of Darm-<br /> stadt, has undertaken to be editor.<br /> Mr. W. B. Lappin, the Irish author, well known<br /> in the Emerald Isle for his descriptive scene paint-<br /> ing and &quot;special&quot; article work, is just now engaged<br /> on a new novel entitled &quot;Mad Mag,&quot; the scenes of<br /> which are laid in the author&#039;s native province of<br /> &quot;the black north,&quot; added to a mythical continental<br /> creation.<br /> The Christmas number of Household Words<br /> contains a story entitled &quot;The Warning Bell,&quot;<br /> by Mrs. do Courcy Laffan (Mrs. Leith Adams).<br /> About the last week in January a volume of<br /> collected stories, by the same writer, will be<br /> published in six-shilling volume form by Messrs.<br /> Digby, Long, and Co., of 18, Bouverie-street.<br /> The initial story gives the title to the book,<br /> &quot;Accessory Before the Fact,&quot; and will be illustrated<br /> by Mr. Trevor Haddon, R.B.A. Early in the<br /> spring a serial by Mrs. Laffan, entitled &quot;The<br /> Vicar of Dale End,&quot; will commence to run in<br /> Household Words; and a series of papers, run-<br /> ning in the Oakleaf— the magazine of the ist<br /> Battalion &quot;Cheshire&quot; Regiment, now quartered<br /> in the Deccan—will assume volume form, under<br /> the title of &quot;Regimentol Memories.&quot; &quot;Georgie&#039;s<br /> Wooer &quot;—a story by Mrs. Laffan that has had a<br /> great vogue in America—where the publishers<br /> are Messrs. Harper and Co., of New York—.<br /> appears this week in the popular cheap series<br /> entitled &quot;The Welcome Librarv,&quot; published by<br /> Mr. F. White, of Bedford-street. Strand.<br /> Mr. Stephen Wheeler has been authorised by<br /> Lady Graves Sawle to publish a final selection<br /> from Walter Savage Landor&#039;s correspondence<br /> with the sister and niece of Rose Aylmer.<br /> Messrs. Duckworth will publish the volume.<br /> A movement is being made to secure a Civil<br /> List pension or a grant for the family of the late<br /> Mr. Gleeson White. The friends of Mr. White<br /> are in the meantime raising a subscription, sub-<br /> scribers to which are asked to communicate with<br /> Mr. H. R. Hope-Pinker, 22, Avonmore-road,<br /> West Kensington.<br /> An appeal is also made to friends and the<br /> public on behalf of the widow and four children<br /> of the late Mr. Harold Frederic . The hon.<br /> secretory and treasurer of this fund is Mr. W. J.<br /> Fisher, 88, St. George&#039;s-square, S.W.<br /> A meeting of subscribers for the Liverpool<br /> memorial to Mrs. Hemans will be held at the<br /> Common Hall, Hackins Hey, Liverpool, on the 6th<br /> inst. It is expected that a sum of ^6135 will be<br /> available, and the meeting will decide what form<br /> the memorial shall take.<br /> A movement is on foot to erect a statue of<br /> Byron in Aberdeen city, which is, of course, inti-<br /> mately associated with the poet&#039;s early days.<br /> Subscriptions to the fund are being received by<br /> the City Chamberlain, Town House, Aberdeen.<br /> A Lever Society is being formed in London<br /> for the purpose of interchanging views and<br /> opinions concerning his novels, and also with the<br /> intention of getting together material for a new<br /> Life of Lever. Anyone who has any documents<br /> or letters, or who can supply any reminiscences<br /> of Lever, or who is interested in the man and his<br /> works, is invited to communicate with the hon.<br /> secretary of the Lever Society, Mr. Arthur Dana,<br /> 67, Guilford-street, Russell-square, W.C.<br /> The 150th anniversary of Goethe&#039;s birthday<br /> occurs this year, and it is proposed to erect a<br /> statue of the poet in Strasburg, at whose college<br /> he studied.<br /> A monument to the memory of Mathilde Blind<br /> was unveiled at Finchley Cemetery a few weeks<br /> ago, in the presence of a large gathering of<br /> friends of the late poet.<br /> The second number of the Windmill, an<br /> illustrated quarterly of literature and art, contains<br /> a short paper by Vernon Gibberd, on &quot; Periodical<br /> Literature. &quot;The advertising agent,&quot; says the<br /> writer, &quot; is fast beeouiing a more important per-<br /> sonage than the literary contributor, for upon<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 191 (#203) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> him more than upon the buyers must the pro-<br /> prietors rely, not only for the sources of the cost<br /> .of production, but also for the means of profit.&quot;<br /> &quot;But there are higher things in art than novelty,&quot;<br /> &quot;and it is to vindicate the dignity of literature<br /> and the honour of art that certain literary and<br /> artistic quarterlies have at different times<br /> made their appeal, not so much to the reading<br /> public as to the lovers of literature and the appre-<br /> ciators of art.&quot; The writer continues :—.<br /> In some degree they may be said to represent a revolt,<br /> and it is perhaps their misfortune that so many of the B. P.<br /> regard all rebellion as immoral. Their voice has been lifted<br /> no against convention and conservatism, in art and litera-<br /> ture, against arbitrary standards and dogmatic conventions.<br /> If they have attempted the impossible it is that they might<br /> attain a high point in the possible. They at least formed<br /> a medium for the newer spirit to make itself articulate, and<br /> the cynicism of the Philistine that &quot;in these days men<br /> mount to fame on a Fallout Book article &quot; covers the truth<br /> that writers before denied a hearing have by subsequent<br /> appreciation justified their literary existence.<br /> We understand that Mr. Stanley Lane Poole,<br /> author of the volume recently published in the<br /> &quot;Heroes of the Nations &quot; series by G. P. Putnam<br /> and Sons, entitled &quot; Saladin: and the Fall of the<br /> Kingdom of Jerusalem,&quot; has just been appointed<br /> Professor of Arabic in the University of Dublin.<br /> Mrs. Molesworth has been writing in Chambers&#039;s<br /> Journal (December) on story-writing for the<br /> young, which, she says, &quot; is yet a different thing,<br /> almost a different art, from that of writing for<br /> adults.&quot; It is necessary to become in some sense<br /> a chilil again, yet one must retain one&#039;s older<br /> experience and greater wisdom, for there is so<br /> much to be avoided:—<br /> All suggestion of many of the sadder facts of our com-<br /> plex human nature, which, though learnt they must be when<br /> the boy and girl become man and woman, it would be cruel<br /> as «ell as sinful to teach prematurely; all elements of<br /> suspiciousness, of distrnstfulness of others—above all, of<br /> those whom onr darlings naturally look up to and revere;<br /> all painting in too gloomy colours of this life, sorrow-<br /> burdened, even almost hopelessly tragic as it often seems to<br /> us—till, as the &quot; eventide&quot; approaches, with a wonderful<br /> return to the faithful child nature, we come to believe again<br /> in the &quot; light &quot; as the reality—all these rocks and shoals of<br /> danger and injury must be steered clear of with perfect skill.<br /> For &quot; humbug&quot; in any form is quickly detected by children;<br /> many points a child&#039;s story-teller must be content to evade,<br /> simply to leave untouched upon, never to tell untruths<br /> about.<br /> Those who have studied the subject will feel<br /> especially the force of what Mrs. Molesworth calls<br /> &quot;the important distinction which should be drawn<br /> between writing about and writing for children.&quot;<br /> Miss Ehoda Broughton&#039;s new story, &quot;The Game<br /> and the Candle,&quot; begins in the January number<br /> of Temple Bar.<br /> The identity of C. E. Raimond, the author of<br /> &#039;The Open Question&quot; (and other earlier novels),<br /> has been disclosed as Miss Elizabeth Robins, a<br /> lady well known in various Ibsen role*.<br /> Mrs. John Richard Green is writing a history<br /> of England, designed principally for use in<br /> schools.<br /> Mr. Neil Munro&#039;s new Higland story, &quot;The<br /> Paymaster&#039;s Boy: His Fancy, His Love, and<br /> Adventures,&quot; begins its course as a serial in the<br /> January number of Good Words.<br /> Sir Willi *m Harcourt (according to the Man-<br /> chester Guardian) is likely to employ his increased<br /> leisure in a work which he has long had in his<br /> mind, and for which he has been collecting<br /> materials for some years. This is a study of the<br /> life and political career of Henry St. John,<br /> Viscount Bolingbroke, the great Tory statesman<br /> of Queen Anne&#039;s reign.<br /> Sir George Trevelyan is publishing through<br /> Messrs. Longman in a few days the first part of<br /> his new work &quot; The American Revolution (1766-<br /> 1776).&quot; In his preface, the author says he is<br /> aware that an expectation exists among those who<br /> have read &quot;The Early History of Charles James<br /> Fox&quot; that he would carry on the account of that<br /> statesman&#039;s life from the point at which he<br /> dropped it eighteen years ago. When the con-<br /> sideration of the project was seriously approached,<br /> it became evident that the difficulties of writing a<br /> political biography, as distinguished from a<br /> political history, were in this case insuperable.<br /> The story of Fox between 1774 and 1782 is in-<br /> extricably interwoven with the story of the<br /> American Revolution. What was done and<br /> spoken at Westminster cannot be rightly ex-<br /> plained, nor the conduct of British public men<br /> fairly judged, without a clear and reasonably<br /> detailed account of that which occurred contem-<br /> poraneously beyond the Atlantic. The story of<br /> the times in which Fox lived and wrought has<br /> hitherto been told as it presented itself to the<br /> author; and he trusts that his telling of it may<br /> interest others sufficiently to encourage him in<br /> continuing it.<br /> A writer in the Medical Press and Circular<br /> has been remonstrating with novelists ou the<br /> absence of births from the incidents of their<br /> books. The proportion of births to deaths in<br /> fiction is placed at one to ninety-six; and the<br /> writer has therefore no difficulty in predicting<br /> that the world of fiction will at this rate be de-<br /> populated in eleven years or so. Particular<br /> reference is made to Mr. Marion Crawford&#039;s<br /> works, in which there are nin-ty-oue deaths and<br /> seven marriages, but only two obstetrical inci-<br /> dents; whde Mr. Anthony Hope&#039;s &quot;Prisoner of<br /> Zenda&quot; has on an average five deaths to a<br /> chapter, but not a birth in the whole book.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 192 (#204) ############################################<br /> <br /> 192<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> &quot;Is the Modern Novel Helpful or Harmful to<br /> Morality ?&quot; is the subject of a paper by Dr. Johu<br /> Clifford, M.A., in Great Thoughts for Dee. 31.<br /> His discussion of the question may be reduced<br /> to a simple statement that there are novels which<br /> do and novels which do not help in making the<br /> best men and women. In classifying faulty types<br /> from the point of view of moral progress, the<br /> writer places those novels wherein it is insinuated<br /> that wealth is the fount of virtue—&quot; I thiuk I<br /> would be a good woman if I had .£5000 a year,&quot;<br /> said Becky Sharp; an observation which Dr. Clif-<br /> ford describes as the hackneyed text for &quot;book<br /> after book.&quot; The second objection is to the treat-<br /> ment of tragedies of love, as to which the writer<br /> says:—<br /> To paint a man puling- and whining because be has fallen<br /> in love with another man&#039;s wife and cannot marry her, is<br /> bad Art and bad Ethics combined. Why not sketch a man<br /> pnling and whining because he cannot steal £ 10,000 with-<br /> out risking the prison, or because he cannot appropriate a<br /> few aores of land he would like to have? Such a novel<br /> menaces the strength of the will. It takes the iron out of<br /> the blood. It gives the rein to passion, and imperils the<br /> man, the home, and the State.<br /> Even in these respects, however, Dr. Clifford<br /> thinks the Modern Novel advancing; and, apart<br /> from his objections, &quot;we gladly recognise,&quot; he<br /> says, &quot;but we can never repay, our debt to the<br /> Modern Novel.&quot;<br /> The dinner of the Anglo-African Writers&#039; Club<br /> took place on Dec, 21, in the Grand Hotel,<br /> London, Mr. H. Rider Haggard presiding. Mr.<br /> Bryce, the honorary president, delivered a speech<br /> on colonial possibilities in literature. If, he said,<br /> we had understood our colonies of North America<br /> in 1776 they would have been our colonies still,<br /> and if better results had come in la&#039;e years it<br /> was largely because by literature and personal<br /> communications the two nations knew each other<br /> better. He did not think it idle to suppose that<br /> the time would come when the literary activity of<br /> our colonies themselves might be far more<br /> abundant and powerful than now. At present<br /> they were in the state of bringing things into<br /> order and developing the agencies of commerce,<br /> and the time for literature had perhaps hardly<br /> yet come. The time, however, might come when<br /> the literary activity of the English race would be<br /> largely replenished by the assistance of our<br /> fellow countrymen beyond the seas, aud he<br /> pointed out that this had been in some measure<br /> anticipated in the International and Colonial<br /> Copyright Act of 1886.<br /> QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.<br /> Smollett and the Preface.<br /> CAN any reader of The Author inform the<br /> undersigned in what book occurs a passage<br /> to the effect that &quot; A preface, according to<br /> Tobias Smollett (?), is something which, though<br /> usually put at the beginning of a book, ought<br /> really to come at its end?&quot; A somewhat similar<br /> passage occurs in the preface to &quot; Waverley,&quot; but<br /> that is not the one to which I refer. H. Ha.es.<br /> A Question of Form.<br /> &quot;The world-customer — with the polyglot<br /> German at one elbow with his cheapness, and the<br /> American at the other elbow with his smartness<br /> —is now beginning to leave the Englishman, to<br /> his but 110 one&#039;s else astonishment.&quot; This is<br /> a sentence from a recent article in the Saturday<br /> Jtecieir.<br /> May I inquire which is the correct form-—no<br /> one&#039;s else or no one else&#039;s? T.<br /> OBITUARY.<br /> MR. WILLIAM BLACK died on the even-<br /> ing of Saturday, Dec. 10, at his resi-<br /> dence, Paston House, Brighton. Over-<br /> work had affected Mr. Black&#039;s health during<br /> three or four years; about September the illness<br /> took a terious form, and for the last few weeks<br /> of his life he suffered from brain fever. Born<br /> in Glasgow in 1841, Mr. Black studied art at the<br /> Government Art School there for two years, and<br /> then turned into journalism. He left the staff<br /> of the Glasgow Weekly Citizen in 1864 to come<br /> to London, where he joined the late Morning<br /> Star, and had for colleagues Mr. Morley, Mr.<br /> McCarthy, Sir Edward Russell, and Mr. Charles<br /> Cooper. In the same year he published &quot;James<br /> Merle: an Autobiography,&quot; and after serving his<br /> paper in the capacity of war correspondent in the<br /> Prusso-Russian War of 1866, Mr. Black wrote<br /> for the Echo and afterwards for the Daily Neves,<br /> occupying for four years the post of assistant-<br /> editor of the latter journal. He also edited the<br /> Examiner for a short time. &quot;Love or Marriage,&quot;<br /> which he came to dislike, was published in 1867,<br /> &quot;In Silk Attire,&quot; two years later, but attracted<br /> very little attention: Mr. Black&#039;s first great success<br /> was achieved in 1871 with &quot;A Daughter of Heth.&quot;<br /> &quot;A Princess of Thule,&quot; issued in 1873, found<br /> Mr. Black&#039;s reputation established, and since<br /> then stories came from his pen at the rate of<br /> about one each year, and everything he wrote<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 193 (#205) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> i93<br /> found a ready public. His books were so often<br /> laid in tbe Scottish Highlands that this part of<br /> the world was recognised as his particular field,<br /> whose atmosphere and scenery he loved so well<br /> and presented so vividly to his readers. It is<br /> only necessary to name &quot;Macleod of Dare,&quot;<br /> &quot;The Strange Adventures of a Phaeton,&quot; &quot; White<br /> Heather,&quot; &quot;Far Lochaber,&quot; &quot;Briseis,&quot; and his<br /> last novel, published last year, &quot; Wild Eelin,&quot; to<br /> 1 all up in one&#039;s mind the wholesome characteris-<br /> tics of Mr. Black&#039;s work and the deep feeling for<br /> Nature which it exhibits. Mr. Black did not<br /> occupy the public eye much except through his<br /> novels. He was accustomed to seek recreation in<br /> his favourite sport of salmon-fishing on Highland<br /> lochs, and to think out his plots during solitary<br /> perambulation on the sea front at Brighton.<br /> The late Mrs. Haweis was the author of &quot;The<br /> Art of Beauty,&quot; &quot;The Art of Decoration,&quot;<br /> &quot;Chaucer for Children,&quot; and other books, includ-<br /> ing a novel dealing with the problem of divorce,<br /> entitled &quot;A Flame of Fire.&quot; Mrs. Haweis, who<br /> was the wife of the Rev. H. R. Haweis, did much<br /> journalistic work, including London correspon-<br /> dence for the Sydney Herald, and was deeply<br /> devoted to the causes of higher education for<br /> women and female enfranchisement. She had<br /> been in failing health for some time, and died at<br /> Bath five weeks ago.<br /> The late Mr. John L. Owen was well known<br /> and popular in journalistic circles in London.<br /> His books include &quot;The Great Jekyll Diamond,&quot;<br /> &quot;Piccadilly Poems,&quot; and &quot;Seven Nights with<br /> Satan,&quot; the last being published only a few weeks<br /> since. Mr. Owen died after an illness lasting<br /> several months.<br /> SOME SAYINQS IN 1898.<br /> BUT with regard to the general public, the<br /> reader of a review article finds it impos-<br /> sible to escape from the authority of the<br /> editorial &quot; we,&quot; and the power of a single writer<br /> to benefit or to injure an author is so great that<br /> none but the most deeply conscientious men ought<br /> to enter the ranks of the anonymous reviewers.—<br /> Alhenseum.<br /> If you would succeed as an author, be one and<br /> nothing else. If you can beg, borrow, or steal as<br /> much as .£50 a year, cut yourself off from every-<br /> thing and write.—Julian Croskey on the results<br /> of his experience (in the New Century Review).<br /> I think our friends the publishers should try<br /> publishing books somewhat cheaper.—Mr. Bryce.<br /> The novel at a guinea-and-a-half died hard in<br /> this country ; the novel at 5*. or 6*. still cumbers<br /> the earth.—Daily News.<br /> Our bookstalls are flooded with works of fiction<br /> mostly written by women—often ungrammatical,.<br /> largely worthless in character, and wholly devoid<br /> of any reasonable interest.—Daily Telegraph.<br /> The spread of a certain education, the constant<br /> cheapening of production, and the rapid expan-<br /> sion of the means of distribution to all the world,,<br /> have substituted for a small and cultured public<br /> an immense audience whom no man can number<br /> but who ask only to be amused.—Daily<br /> Chronicle.<br /> THE BOOKS OF THE MONTH.<br /> [Nov. 23 to Dec. 22—445 Books.]<br /> Abell, H. F. History of Kent. 6/- Ashford: Kentisli Ej-preu.<br /> Abercromby, Hon. John. The Pre- and Proto-Historic Finns. 21/-<br /> not. Nutt.<br /> Addy, S. O. Erolution of the English House. 4/6. Sonnenschein.<br /> Alexander, Mrs. The Cost of Her Pride. 6/- White.<br /> Allen, Grant. Flashlights on Nature. 6/- Newnes.<br /> Allen, Grant. Linnet. A Bomance. 6 - Bichards.<br /> Andrews, O. W. Hand-book of Public Health, Laboratory Work,<br /> &lt;fcc. Part I. 2/6 net. Portsmouth: Charpentler.<br /> Anonymous (*&#039; A. H. S.&quot;). Lessons in Line for Little Learners. 5/-<br /> Stock.<br /> Anonymous I&quot; A. V.&quot;). Olivette, snd other Poems. 1/- neu<br /> Burleigh.<br /> Anonymous (&quot; B. V.&quot;). Ten Days at Monte Carlo. 2/- Heinemann.<br /> Anonymous. Early Recollections of a Journalist, 1832-1859.<br /> Edinburgh: A. Elliot.<br /> AnonymousO&#039;G. M. S.&quot;). Glory. 1/- Nelson.<br /> Anonymous (••G. W.&quot;). The Life of Charles Alan Smythies. 4,-<br /> Universltles Mission Office.<br /> Anonymous. Sursum Corda: A Defence of Idealism. 3/6.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Anonymous (•&#039; T &quot;). World Politics. 5/- Low.<br /> Anonymous. The Book of the Cambridge Beview, 1879-1897. 5/- net.<br /> Macmillan and Bowes.<br /> Anstey, F. Love among the Lions. 2/- net. Dent.<br /> Apologist, An (cd.). Epic of Humanity; or, Quest of the Ideal,<br /> 7/6. Paul.<br /> Arnold, Sir E. The Queen&#039;s Justice. 3/6. Burleigh.<br /> Ashbee, 0. E. (tr.). The Treatises of Benvenuto Cellini on Gold-<br /> smithing and Sculpture. 35/- net. Arnold.<br /> Aspinwall, Alicia. The Echo-Maid, and other Stories. 5/- Shaw.<br /> &quot;Aster.&quot; The Bridge of Light. 2 6. Gay.<br /> Aubrey, F. Strange Stories of the Hospitals. 1/- Pearson.<br /> Austin, J. A. Manual of First Aid. 3/6. Low.<br /> Bailey, H. J. S. Stray Verses. 2/6. Stock.<br /> Baker, Mtb. Woods. Swedish Foster Brothers. 1/- Nelson.<br /> Banks, C. B. 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325	https://historysoa.com/items/show/325	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 09 (February 1899)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+09+%28February+1899%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 09 (February 1899)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1899-02-01-The-Author-9-9					197–216																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1899-02-01">1899-02-01</a>							9			18990201	TLhc Hutbot\<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. 9.] FEBRUART 1, 1899. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Sooiety begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only. ______<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOB some years it has been the practice to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices,&amp;c., for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objeoted as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to oarry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both aides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors oarry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are oarefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> Y 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 198 (#210) ############################################<br /> <br /> 198 THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> I. IiTVEBY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> Pj advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the oonduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If the advioe<br /> sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor, the member<br /> has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s solicitors. If the<br /> case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is desirable, the Com-<br /> mittee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s opinion. All this<br /> without any oost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with oopyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudulent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advanoing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of every-<br /> thing important to literature that you may hear or meet<br /> with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Sooiety now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> ri 1HE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> I Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6&gt;. 6i2. subscription for the year.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21 st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> communioate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously<br /> oommunioating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White -<br /> hall-court. Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, &amp;c.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanced 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correot: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production &quot; for advertising. Of oourse, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I.—The History of Copyright.<br /> IT is not often that we can depart from the<br /> principle generally observed in these pages<br /> —not to review or to pass under criticism<br /> any new books. It is obvious that hostile criti-<br /> cism of books by our own members would be inju-<br /> dicious, to say the least. Aud it is obvious that<br /> laudatory notices might possibly be expected by<br /> all the members as a right. It is also necessary<br /> to remember that the Society has nothing to do<br /> with the literary value of books, but solely and<br /> entirely with literary property. There has, how-<br /> ever, recently appeared a work on literary pro-<br /> perty which must be noticed in these columns,<br /> partly on account of the subject, which concerns,<br /> every reader of The Author, and partly because,<br /> for the first time, that subject has been treated in<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 199 (#211) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 199<br /> such a manner as to make the dry bones of law<br /> and Acts of Parliament full of life. The Origin<br /> of Copyright: the Stationers&#039; Company and the<br /> First Copyright Statute: the Battle of the<br /> Booksellers for Perpetual Copyright: Legis-<br /> lative Enactments: Literary Larceny: and<br /> the Present Situation, are the subjects of as<br /> many chapters in this volume by Mr. Augustine<br /> Birrell (Cassell, 3*. 6rf. netl. Now, as the Law<br /> of Copyright is every day becoming of greater<br /> importance to authors, because they are every<br /> day learning more about the value and import-<br /> ance of their own property, and are becoming<br /> more jealous about its administration, this book,<br /> the only one on the subject which does not<br /> bristle with impediments and impossibilities in<br /> the way of the non-legal reader, should be in the<br /> hands of every member of the literary profession,<br /> in which is included every person who writes a<br /> book.<br /> There has grown up in the minds of many<br /> writers a singular apathy as regards their own<br /> property. This feeling has sprung from the<br /> apparent hopelessness of the situation. One<br /> publisher after another springs up, with the same<br /> old tale of secret profits and overcharges. There<br /> is the same attempt at concealment of real<br /> profits: the same outcry when the true figures<br /> are produced.<br /> The work of the Society ought to have done<br /> much in dispelling this apathy: the advance of<br /> the author towards independence has been of<br /> late years marked and rapid, in spite of the most<br /> strenuous hostility and the most violent opposi-<br /> tion. The situation, in fact, is no longer impos-<br /> sible. And the brief survey of the history of<br /> publishing which may be read, some times between<br /> the lines, in the pages of Mr. Augustine Birrell,<br /> will be found most helpful to every one who<br /> wishes to understand the subject. Among other<br /> excellent things the learned author presents us<br /> with the case of George Wither in the year 1603,<br /> and quotes that poet&#039;s description of the<br /> &quot;Honest&quot; and the &quot;Mere&quot; Stationer and Pub-<br /> lisher. The description of the Honest publisher<br /> could hardly be put better even in this day; as, for<br /> instance, when he says that the Honest Stationer<br /> &quot;loves a good Author as his Brother, and would<br /> be ready to yield him the due portion of his<br /> Labours without wrangling.&quot; As for the &quot; Mere&quot;<br /> stationer, he says:<br /> If an Author oat of meere necessity do but procure<br /> meanes to make sale of (i.e., to publish) his owne booke or<br /> to preuent the combinations of such as he by some Royall<br /> or laufull priveledge, he presently cryes it downe for a<br /> Monopoly: affyrming that men of his profession may go<br /> [and] hang themselves if that be suffred. Marry ; Authors<br /> haue a long time presented a very thankfull generation of<br /> them from hanging if they cannot afford them one booke of<br /> ten Millions to releeue them withall in a case of need—and<br /> when that booke was the Authors owne alsoe and no parte<br /> of the Stationers former liuelihood. This is just as reason-<br /> able a complaint as if a Company of Hagglers should prefer<br /> a bill against the Cnntry Farmers, for bringing their own<br /> Corne and other prouisions to the next markett.<br /> The book contributes a passage which should<br /> effectually clear the air of the confusion which<br /> prevails between the literary and the commercial<br /> value of a book. In these pages it has been con-<br /> tended over and over again that the two things<br /> are not commensurable. They have nothing to<br /> do with each other. If a bad book gets a great<br /> circulation, it means that it is a great property.<br /> Whether it deserves its popularity is a question<br /> for critics, not for the Society. So, if a good<br /> book fails, the Society has nothing to say to its<br /> failure: that is for the critics. Mr. Birrell puts<br /> the case strongly and unmistakeably. The com-<br /> mercial value of a book is represented by its<br /> sale, and nothing else. Literary property may<br /> be created by very bad literature, but property<br /> must be defended, whether it belongs to good or<br /> bad literature.<br /> If it is objected to the Sooiety that it too much empha-<br /> sises the commercial side of literature, the answer must be,<br /> it is with the commercial side of literature the Society is<br /> concerned.<br /> After all, why should not a really bad author like Mr.<br /> Thomas Hot or Miss Blatheria Gabblegoose make £ 100,000<br /> out of their trashy books, if as a matter of fair commerce*<br /> that sum represents their true share of the profits? Why<br /> should Rot&#039;s children and Gabblegoose&#039;s nephews and<br /> nieces be deprived of the cash value of their relatives&#039;<br /> ridiculous popularity? Educate the masses if you can, so<br /> as to make that popularity impossible, but so long as it<br /> exists it is as much (within the limits of the period as signed<br /> by the law which, indeed, it will never exceed) the property<br /> of its creator as if it were somebody&#039;s soap or so-and-so&#039;s<br /> pill8- __=»c__<br /> II.—Copyright in Press Telegrams.<br /> In the Ceylon Legislative Council, on Dec. 2,<br /> Mr. Layard moved the first reading of &quot;An<br /> Ordinance to secure in certain cases the right of<br /> property in telegraphic press messages.&quot; Sir E.<br /> Noel Walker seconded, and the Bill was read a<br /> first time, and set down for second reading at the<br /> next meeting of the Council. The text of the Bill<br /> is as follows.<br /> &quot;Whereas it is expedient to secure, in certain<br /> cases, the right of property in telegraphic press<br /> messages: Be it therefore enacted by the<br /> Governor of Ceylon, by and with the advice and<br /> consent of the Legislative Council thereof, as<br /> follows:—<br /> &quot;1. When any person, in the manner hereinafter<br /> mentioned, publishes in any newspaper or other<br /> printed paper, published and circulated in Ceylon,<br /> any message by electric telegraph from any place<br /> outside the said island, lawfully received by such<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 200 (#212) ############################################<br /> <br /> 200<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> person, no other person shall, without the consent<br /> in writing of such first-mentioned person, or his<br /> agent thereto, lawfully authorise, print or publish,<br /> or cause to be printed or published, such telegram,<br /> or the substance thereof or any extract therefrom,<br /> until after a period of forty-eight hours from time<br /> of first publication; provided that such period<br /> shall not extend beyond sixty hours from the time<br /> of the receipt of such message (Sundays and public<br /> and Bank Holidays excepted), and the publica-<br /> tion of the whole or any part of such telegram, or<br /> of the substance thereof, or (excepting the publi-<br /> cation of any similar message in like manner<br /> sent) of the intelligence therein contained or any<br /> comment upon, or any reference to such intelli-<br /> gence, shall be deemed to be a publication of the<br /> same.<br /> &quot;2. If any person wilfully print and publish, or<br /> cause to be printed and published, any matter<br /> contrary to the provision of this Ordinance, he<br /> shall be liable to a fine not exceeding one<br /> hundred rupees; and every person who is con-<br /> victed a second time of any offence against this<br /> Ordinance, shall be liable to a fine not exceeding<br /> two hundred rupees.<br /> &quot;3. Telegraphic messages published under the<br /> protection of this Ordinance shall be printed<br /> under the heading &#039;By Submarine Telegraph,&#039;<br /> and shall state the day and hour of their receipt,<br /> and such statement shall be prima facie evidence<br /> of the time of the receipt of such messages.<br /> &quot;4. (1) During the period of forty-eight<br /> hours hereinbefore mentioned, no intelligence<br /> protected by this Ordinance shall be transmitted<br /> by electric telegraph to any person outside Ceylon<br /> by or on behalf of any person other than the<br /> person who, nnder the provisions of this Ordi-<br /> nance, is entitled to the exclusive use of such<br /> intelligence. (2) Any person acting in contra-<br /> vention of this section shall be guilty of an<br /> offence, and liable on conviction to a fine not<br /> exceeding two hundred rupees for any subsequent<br /> offence.<br /> &#039;5. In any prosecution under this Ordinance,<br /> the production of any document which purports<br /> to be a telegraphic message from some place out-<br /> side Ceylon, and which contains the intelligence<br /> published in the newspapers as aforesaid, and<br /> which has been delivered to some person entitled<br /> to receive the same by the proper officer of the<br /> Telegraph Department, shall be prima facie<br /> evidence that the message published as herein-<br /> before described in such newspaper is a message<br /> within the meaning of this Ordinance; and proof<br /> that any person is owner, or is, or is acting, or<br /> appears to be acting as editor or manager of any<br /> newspaper in which there has been any publica-<br /> tion contrary to the provisions of this Ordinance,<br /> shall be prima facie evidence that such person<br /> has wilfully caused such unlawful publication.<br /> &quot;6. Nothing in this Ordinance shall extend to<br /> any document published by the Government<br /> Printer, or to the report of any proceedings in the<br /> Legislative Council.<br /> &quot;7. This Ordinance shall be cited as &#039;The<br /> Telegram Copyright Ordinance, 189—.&#039;&quot;<br /> The above extract has been printed from the<br /> Indian Daily News. _____<br /> It appears that the Ceylon Legislative Council<br /> is going boldly to deal with a question which has<br /> been agitating the Press and all those interested<br /> in copyright in England for many years, and<br /> which has not been satisfactorily dealt with in<br /> this country owing to the many difficulties that<br /> surround the question.<br /> According to the Ceylon Bill, clause 1, copyright<br /> is given for forty-eight hours, and is on the whole<br /> very comprehensive. The Bill that was before<br /> the House of Lords last session by clause 11 asks,<br /> as regards newspapers, for &quot;Copyright in such news<br /> and information as have been specially and in-<br /> dependently obtained.&quot; Mr. Moberly Bell, the<br /> manager of the Times, was called and examined<br /> at great length on this clause. The questions put<br /> to him and the answers he gave are exceedingly<br /> interesting and instructive to those who desire a<br /> full knowledge of the subject. It seems altogether<br /> unfair that where a paper like the Times has<br /> obtained a telegram at enormous expense it should<br /> have the benefit that may be likely to accrue to it<br /> destroyed by publication of a copy of the telegram<br /> in other papers the same day. Mr. Bell was in<br /> favour of a twenty-four hours copyright.<br /> Of course if the telegram had been also in-<br /> dependently obtained by another newspaper there<br /> would be copyright in that telegram also. The<br /> Bill was drawn to prevent papers taking the news<br /> from one another without a fair payment, and if<br /> some such copyright law were passed it is quite<br /> probable that the Times or any other paper that<br /> obtained independent news would sell the right<br /> of reproduction, and thus obtain an adequate<br /> remuneration for the trouble and expense in-<br /> curred. No doubt the point will be satisfactorily<br /> dealt with when the Government have thought<br /> fit to take up the long deferred question of<br /> copyright. ai[<br /> III.—The Same Old Agreement.<br /> Memorandum of Agreement made this day<br /> of , 189 between of , hereafter<br /> called the publisher of the one part, and of<br /> hereafter called the anthor, of the other part.<br /> The said publisher agrees to produce in tasteful form, and<br /> publish in the usual manner at his own expense, an edition<br /> of a volume written by the said author and entitled<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 201 (#213) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 20I<br /> &quot;,&quot; the said volume to consist of one hundred and<br /> ninety-two pages orown octavo size, and to be published at<br /> five shillings per copy.<br /> The said author hereby agrees to be responsible for the<br /> sale of three hundred and fifty copies of the said volume,<br /> and undertakes at the expiration of six months from the<br /> daet of issue to purchase at the rate of three shillings per<br /> copy whatever number of oopies, if any, may be necessary to<br /> make the sales up to the said number of three hundred and<br /> fifty copies.<br /> This edition to be the property of the said publisher, bnt<br /> it is understood that the copyright is and remains the pro-<br /> perty of the said author. All proofs of the said work to be<br /> oorrected and returned promptly to the printer by the said<br /> author.<br /> The agreement printed above has again been<br /> handed by a member of the Authors&#039; Society to<br /> the Secretary. Three or four times already the<br /> agreement has been printed in The Author and<br /> the other productions of the Society, and the<br /> dangers arising from such agreement explained.<br /> That in one certain case the agreement may have<br /> worked out fairly is not an argument that the<br /> agreement i3 a good one, but this argument has<br /> been urged by the publisher, for an agreement<br /> should be so drawn that in any case and whatever<br /> the sale of the book, it should be an equitable<br /> agreement between the parties concerned. The<br /> dangers of this agreement have so often been set<br /> forward that it was hoped, as indeed has been the<br /> case for some time, that no such agreements had<br /> been recently circulated. Perhaps it will be<br /> necessary to explain once more in general terms<br /> the unreasonableness of the agreement as it<br /> stands.<br /> To begin with, the book is a small one, 192 pp.<br /> cr. 8vo., and it is published at a large price for<br /> such a small book, viz., 5*. The author guarantees<br /> to purchase 350 copies by the end of six months<br /> at the price of 3$., making in all a sum of .£52 i0s.,<br /> a sum which must go a long way towards paying<br /> the cost of production if not covering it alto-<br /> gether, especially as no mention is made of the<br /> size of the edition. If 750 copies only were<br /> printed, it may be understood that the publisher<br /> would virtually have no risk. This is not all<br /> however. It does not pay the publisher to push<br /> the book in the least degree for the first six<br /> months, for if he should do so he will not obtain<br /> the author&#039;s money. He therefore has nothing<br /> to do but let the book lie on his shelves and at<br /> the end of the six months send in his account for<br /> the number of copies unsold. No agreement<br /> should be drawn on such lines that it is not for<br /> the benefit of the author and publisher to be<br /> working in unison.<br /> Looking into the agreement further, it is<br /> obvious that no mention is made whatever of<br /> the profits to accrue after the sale of 350 copies,<br /> except in the last clause, in which it says:<br /> &quot;This edition is to be the property of the pub-<br /> lisher.&quot; As has been pointed out no hmit is<br /> mentioned to the edition. If, therefore, the book<br /> chances to be a success the publisher could go on<br /> printing and selling the book, putting all the<br /> profits into his own pocket and stating that the<br /> first edition was, say, 10,000 copies. The Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association have not as yet settled that<br /> great point, what should be the number of an<br /> edition.<br /> Summing up the whole results, therefore, of the<br /> agreement, it does not pay the publisher to work<br /> in unison with the author. Their benefit is not<br /> mutual. The publisher runs no risk and may<br /> possibly make a large profit. From the author s<br /> point of view the author stands to lose .£52 i0*.,<br /> and cannot possibly make anything, however suc-<br /> cessful the book is. This agreement, therefore,<br /> cannot possibly be called equitable as between<br /> the parties. G- H- T-<br /> IV.—A Friendly Critic.<br /> I have been an associate of the Authors&#039;<br /> Society now for six years, and have during that<br /> time tried to keep in touch with it by occasionally<br /> making some irresponsible comments on the<br /> contents of its journal. Having just polished off<br /> my year&#039;s work, and received a copy of the<br /> December Author, I take the liberty of criticising<br /> that number—for publication or not, as you like,<br /> of course. The motive, as I say, is merely that of<br /> keeping in touch—marking my gratitude, perhaps,<br /> for the education I receive through the journal,<br /> which I might, if I did not acknowledge it some-<br /> how, be thought not to appreciate.<br /> Page 151: &quot;A Curious Question.&quot; Sales<br /> reported to date, say, 500; account delivered and<br /> royalty paid thereon. The week after, a certain<br /> bookseller tells the publisher he has 100 copies of<br /> that publisher&#039;s dead books on hand (which<br /> include, say, twenty copies of the book in ques.<br /> tion), and will he &quot; exchange&quot; them? (the same<br /> thing as buying them back). Publisher does so;<br /> he has therefore paid author royalty on twenty<br /> more copies than he has sold. The &quot;curious<br /> question &quot; (and it is aptly called) amounts, then,<br /> divested of &quot;fatal generalisation,&quot; to this: If<br /> the book manages to sell again (or not, for that<br /> matter), shall the author refund the royalty on<br /> those twenty copies?<br /> Sir W. B. says No. The publisher took them<br /> back for his own purposes, and the author has<br /> nothing to do with that. Mr. Thring replies<br /> with admirable equivocation (which may be non-<br /> committal, but does not assist the author), &quot; It is<br /> a point of moral obligation.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 202 (#214) ############################################<br /> <br /> 202<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Since you expressly invite opinions, this is<br /> mine: The books were not sold, and, although no<br /> publisher would think of asking for a cash return,<br /> he would be justified in reselling those twenty<br /> copies before any other, and the author if asked<br /> would assuredly reply that it was his moral obli-<br /> gation to be glad that the publisher had an oppor-<br /> tunity of recovering his over-payment. And this<br /> is why I have the temerity to gainsay Sir Walter.<br /> If you put your invention in the hands of a<br /> dealer to sell for you, it would be fool-pidgin<br /> (in the language of the East) to restrict him in<br /> the management of the sales. The Authors&#039;<br /> Syndicate itself stipulates, I believe, that, once<br /> put in charge of an invention, the inventor shall<br /> not meddle with their management of it. Now,<br /> one of the most difficult matters for the publisher<br /> (and the difficulty arises chiefly on account of the<br /> author&#039;s suspiciousness) is that everlasting ques-<br /> tion of &quot; Sale or Return.&quot; You may notice that<br /> Mr. Zeitgeist (Literary Property, III.), who<br /> apparently proceeded by the advice of the<br /> Society, put all his books &quot;on sale.&quot; Very often<br /> you simply can&#039;t deal with &quot; Smith&#039;s&quot; except on<br /> that arrangement. When the time for rendering<br /> accounts comes, the publisher finds that Smith<br /> has taken 500 copies &quot; on sale.&quot; What is he to<br /> do with the author? He can&#039;t leave the whole<br /> parcel out of his account; it probably represents<br /> the major part of the edition. If he gives him<br /> the royalty on the 500, what is he to do when<br /> next week 100 soiled copies come back on his<br /> ,hands, with the curt remark, &quot;Book dead&quot;?<br /> This is a question in itself worth your treat-<br /> ment if you have not already treated it; but there<br /> can be no doubt that in such a case the books<br /> have not been sold, and that, if the author has<br /> received royalty on them, he ought to refund it.<br /> I know that you will immediately reply, &quot; This<br /> is beside the question; we were not talking of<br /> books on sale.&quot; With your leave I shall say that<br /> you were. In reality, a number of books sold to a<br /> bookseller are not really sold; they are placed on<br /> the counter for sale. I could mention to you at<br /> least three London booksellers, and two provin-<br /> cial ones, who make a constant practice, and a<br /> very annoying one, of arranging with the<br /> &quot;traveller&quot; to make certain exchanges of dead<br /> books for live ones; their invariable argument is,<br /> &quot;Well, if we weren&#039;t sure that you would see we<br /> were not&#039;left&#039; with dead paper, we should not<br /> order so many.&quot; Now the traveller has a new<br /> book in his bag which he is anxious to place by<br /> the dozen (his own commission is in question, too)<br /> and he exercises his proper discretion (if you wish<br /> a traveller to push, you must give him discretion)<br /> by arranging for the return of the old books, or<br /> at least by promising that in the case of this<br /> particular new book he will see, if the bookseller<br /> will take a dozen, that he is not &quot;left.&quot; In<br /> short, there is always a certain amount of &quot; on<br /> sale or return &quot; business going on; the publisher<br /> himself kicks at it, but his traveller (the most<br /> important part of the firm) insists on discre-<br /> tionary powers, and the author should be ready<br /> to grant similar discretion to bis publisher. As<br /> another instance, I will take the liberty of men-<br /> tioning Messrs. Denny Brothers, not only a very<br /> large and important firm of booksellers, but very<br /> prompt, honest, and practical business men. I<br /> believe they can only take stock once a year.<br /> Suppose they find to their surprise that they have<br /> £100 worth of dead stuff from a single publisher<br /> (not, of course, bought in one year, but consisting<br /> of special books which are carried forward for a<br /> long time before their demand is certainly dead),<br /> what are they to do in this case? They put it to<br /> the traveller; the traveller puts it to the firm; the<br /> publisher kicks, and says it is their own look-out<br /> if they overstock, and, if they like to be fools, he<br /> is not going to pay for their folly. Now, what is<br /> Mr. Denny going to reply to this? If he does<br /> not ominously say nothing, and quietly return<br /> the traveller his samples with a conclusive &quot; Two<br /> each,&quot; he may very justly reply: &quot;I buy your<br /> books by the dozen and give them a good show.<br /> I get no better terms than anyone else, but I do<br /> more for your authors than many smaller dealers.<br /> I cannot keep an eye on every book I buy, and<br /> they go into the shelves and are lost sight of. I<br /> own that I have bought and paid for these books,<br /> and that I have no right to ask you to buy them<br /> back. None the less, I find that I have lost over<br /> them, chiefly through taking your word that they<br /> were better than they are. I must sell them for<br /> waste paper and lose .£90. Do you care to bear<br /> part of that loss with me? If I had not stocked<br /> them, you would have lost that &lt;£i00 yourself. If<br /> you cannot meet me, I must give over pushing<br /> your books and buy them only to order, devoting<br /> my show space to more lucrative stuff.&quot; Now,<br /> what is the publisher to do? He knows, more<br /> than your authors appear to do, how much a book<br /> depends on the bookseller. He knows that if<br /> Denny takes a dozen, he will sell nine; but if he<br /> only takes two, he will only sell that two. Is it<br /> not better to virtually put that dozen &quot;on sale,&quot;<br /> even if, a year after, he has to buy back three? I<br /> will own that as a rule the publisher does not see<br /> it in this light, chiefly because it muddles up the<br /> accounts, and because the author will not treat<br /> him with the same give-and-take. But it illus-<br /> trates my theoretical contention that no book is<br /> sold until the bookseller has sold it, and that the<br /> author has no right to royalty on books which the<br /> publisher buys back. I reply to the &quot;Curious<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 203 (#215) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 203<br /> Question,&quot; then, that the publisher has not only<br /> the right to resell those books which come back,<br /> first, but that, if they ave dead, he has even a right<br /> to ask the author to refund the royalty on them.<br /> [Very well. But why does the publisher<br /> return as &quot;sold &quot; books which are not paid for?<br /> He can surely wait till he gets the money or till<br /> the books are returned.—Ed.]<br /> &quot;Literary Property—III.&quot; merely calls for a<br /> repetition of my remarks above concerning the<br /> &quot;traveller.&quot; &quot;Zeitgeist&quot; tells us that he has<br /> printed 3000 copies for &lt;£118, &quot;advertising<br /> extra.&quot; But what on earth is printing and<br /> advertising? That is not publishing a book.<br /> He says triumphantly, &quot;The book is well<br /> groomed, and the publisher nowhere — not<br /> wanted.&quot; I venture to &quot; beg his pardon.&quot; He<br /> says, &quot;My egg may be addled.&quot; &quot;With every<br /> regret I am bound to say there is every likelihood<br /> of that catastrophe, because he has- overlooked<br /> the true raison d&#039;itre of the publisher&#039;s existence.<br /> Publishing consists not in printing and adver-<br /> tising, but in putting the book on the market.<br /> How is this done? By travellers. The author<br /> may, if he likes, &quot; travel &quot; London himself at a cost<br /> not exceeding 6d. a day and his time. Unless he<br /> has the good fortune to have been a trave ler by<br /> profession, he will find that it will take him a<br /> good fortnight to do London alone, and then he<br /> will probably miss the most important exporters.<br /> There is no way of finding out the full list of<br /> buyers in London except by tedious experience<br /> or the advice of a professional, and, after all, it<br /> would be peine perdue, for he would find that<br /> three-fourths of them would not &quot;open an<br /> account&quot; with a private person. Then he has to<br /> collect his accounts, deliver his small parcels—oh<br /> Lord! he little knows who would be his pub-<br /> lisher himself. To travel &quot; the country&quot; would<br /> take about three months, at a minimum expense<br /> of 15*. a day. And, in short, no author is fit to<br /> &quot;travel&quot; at all, and he would only make a fool<br /> of himself. I presume that &quot;Zeitgeist&quot; sold<br /> through Simpkins; it&#039; he didn&#039;t, he can&#039;t have<br /> &quot;published &quot; himself at all. It is too long to go<br /> into, but I believe I could jirove conclusively<br /> that an unknown author has a far better chance<br /> of a sale and of profit on a 15, or even a 10,<br /> per cent. royalty from a good firm, than by<br /> playing amateur publisher himself. That is one<br /> mischief you do, Mr. Author. You uncon-<br /> sciously persuade young aspirants to undertake<br /> something quite out of their line, and which<br /> they are entirely unfit for. Your only off-set to<br /> this misdirection of zeal is your old advice that a<br /> book which a publisher will not accept is a book<br /> that is not worth publishing. You ought<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> certainly to add this to your permanent front<br /> page. And I wish next time anyone tells you<br /> how they had gone behind the publisher you<br /> would exact a full account of the methods<br /> employed vis-a-vis the booksellers, and the result.<br /> That would be useful; we should learn by other<br /> authors&#039; mistakes.<br /> [Very well, again. But my correspondent is<br /> mistaken. No one wants a young author to<br /> &quot;travel&quot; for himself, or to become an &quot; amateur<br /> publisher.&quot; Nor is Simpkin the only distributing<br /> publisher. Nor has every firm its own travellers.<br /> The &#039;• Method of the Future &quot; has nothing to do<br /> with amateur publishing, and nothing to do with<br /> private attempts to sell a book.—Ed.]<br /> I pass on to &quot;VII. Author and Publisher&quot;<br /> —&quot; Glenfruin.&quot; To begin with, I have a fault to<br /> find with the tone of this letter, a tone con-<br /> stantly recurring in The Author; it is one<br /> which is not &quot;business,&quot; and does great<br /> harm to the business character of the journal.<br /> &quot;Glenfruin&quot; says: &quot;The present relations<br /> between A. and P. are truly ridiculous to<br /> contemplate. &#039;You give me your book,&#039; says<br /> P. to A., &#039;and you see nothin&#039;, and you ask<br /> nothin&#039;, except what I may be jolly well pleased<br /> to give you, for I am the Immaculate Llama<br /> of Literature.&#039;&quot; Mr. Author—that &quot;nothin&#039;,&quot;<br /> that &quot;jolly well&quot;! It is all very jolly, but it is<br /> not la guerre. With all respect to Mr. Glenfruin,<br /> I think the older or sager members of the Society<br /> might ask you to use the blue pencil occasionally<br /> so that we may not seem children.<br /> And now for &quot; Grlenfruin&#039;s&quot; contentions. How<br /> comes it that you insert this letter without a note<br /> re-stating your own frequent refutation of it?<br /> &quot;Glenfruin &quot; thinks that a book depends on the<br /> critics, and that the critics are in the pay of the<br /> publisher. Both these are exploded fallacies. A<br /> book is subscribed before it is published, and no<br /> bookseller reads reviews. Bad reviews cannot<br /> alter the &quot;subscription,&quot; which is the only sale<br /> the new author gets unless his book is good. If<br /> it is good, sufficient reviews will find it out to<br /> persuade a certain number of readers to take it<br /> from the library, and these readers do the rest.<br /> If Jones tells you the book is &quot; jolly good,&quot; are<br /> you influenced because Literature tells you it<br /> is tiresome? No. The vivil voce recommenda-<br /> tion is the one that tells. You know Jones; you<br /> don&#039;t know the critic. Secondly, I repeat, if the<br /> book is good, you may be sure the majority of the<br /> critics will say so. Every unknown book gets<br /> from thirty to fifty notices in the English Press;<br /> every book by a kiiown author from fifty to 100.<br /> Out of a score of critics, how many will be<br /> influenced by a publisher, by &quot;private enmity,&quot;<br /> z<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 204 (#216) ############################################<br /> <br /> 204<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> or by inherent malice? At the outside, five.<br /> The rest may not know a good book from a bad<br /> one, or share your own notions of what is good,<br /> but you may be pretty sure that ten of them,<br /> taken together, have a better &quot;general idea&quot; of<br /> what the public likes than you have. But apart<br /> from this, and &quot;thirdly,&quot; out of that score of<br /> critics not more than five are so much as read by<br /> book buyers ; people who can afford to buy books,<br /> if they want criticisms at all to go by, look to a<br /> dozen papers at the outside, and not many of that<br /> dozen will notice you at all, unless you are<br /> &quot;good.&quot; The idea of a critic of any importance<br /> sedulously hobnobbing with a dozen publishers<br /> daily, and going over with them the pile of books<br /> on his table, is pretty, but &quot;it won&#039;t wash<br /> clothes.&quot; Here and there an important critic has<br /> a friendship, or an interest, with one or two<br /> publishers, and may receive a hint that a good<br /> review of one of the firm&#039;s books would be grate-<br /> fully received, but it doe&lt; not occur &quot;every time &quot;;<br /> and such influence could only be secured to praise<br /> a book, and a book that would bear praising<br /> without loss to the critic&#039;s prestige.<br /> With unabated admiration for the work of the<br /> Society. M.<br /> Ottawa, Dec. 1898.<br /> [The practice in these columns has been to let<br /> members of the Society have their say, within<br /> reasonable limits. What &quot;M.&quot; says has been said<br /> already, over and over again, as to the value of<br /> reviews. As to the connection between critics and<br /> publishers, that is not a point to be settled out of<br /> hand. One hears so many stories, and makes so<br /> many observations, that such a connection some-<br /> times exists, to the destruction of fair reviewing.<br /> That it is a common practice one would be very<br /> unwilling to believe.—Ed.]<br /> &gt;«^——.<br /> THE AMERICAN BOOK TRADE.<br /> THE book trade of America is in an exceed-<br /> ingly prosperous state so far as the sale<br /> of books goes, but there, as in this<br /> country, the position of the bookseller is becoming<br /> a matter of anxiety. An extremely optimistic<br /> article on book-buying appeared lately in the<br /> New York Times, wherein it is stated that the<br /> most remarkable evidence of increased demand<br /> is the very conspicuous place which books now<br /> have in the shops and in the advertisements of<br /> the department stores and other mercantile esta-<br /> blishments that have lately entered that branch of<br /> trade. What a few years ago was at most a<br /> book counter has in many of these establishments<br /> become an immense book store, furnished forth<br /> with a great stock of books, and prepared to take<br /> and fill orders to supply any book published any-<br /> where. Old houses seem to be doing a larger<br /> business than ever, and the new ones that are<br /> established from time to time seem to find room<br /> for themselves. The conclusion is inevitable,<br /> therefore, that the people are buying more books,<br /> and the Areic York Times finds the reason for<br /> this to lie in the fact that books are cheap to-<br /> day: &quot;The old, well-known books, the classics of<br /> literature which it is commonly assumed that<br /> everybody has read, and which comparatively few<br /> have really ever had in their hands, are so very<br /> cheap that persons who ever talk about books<br /> are ashamed not to own some of them, and have<br /> them in the house. Cooper, Thackeray, Dickens,<br /> not to mention Macaulay and Gibbon, are at<br /> anybody&#039;s command for a surprisingly small<br /> sum: not in sumptuous editions, not in library<br /> bindings, but still in readable form.&quot;<br /> Yet in the midst of all this activity the dis-<br /> tributor of books is in difficulties. In the words<br /> of the Dial, &quot;his occupation is slipping from<br /> him, through the action of irresistible economic<br /> laws, and the thoughtless public pays little heed<br /> to his plight.&quot; The great dealers in miscellaneous<br /> merchandise are absorbing the retail trade in<br /> books, and are even getting possession of the<br /> customers who have hitherto supported the book-<br /> sellers of the smaller towns. &quot;The bookseller<br /> who used to think 50 per cent. not too large a<br /> profit upon his wares, considering that he offered<br /> as a bonus his good advice and genial friendship,<br /> has given place to the merchant who can wax fat<br /> upon 10 per cent., or less, of profit, but is too<br /> busy to have either advice or friendship to spare<br /> for you.&quot; It appears that a striking experiment<br /> has recently been made by a publishing house,<br /> which advertises broadcast its willingness to send<br /> any of its publications to any address upon the<br /> receipt of a post-card request, trusting to the<br /> honesty of the prospective purchaser either to<br /> return the book or to pay for it. The general<br /> adoption of this plan, remarks the Dial, would<br /> tend to eliminate retail bookselling from the list<br /> of business occupations. Still, another experi-<br /> ment of which the bookseller makes complaint is<br /> that of selling books of the more expensive sort<br /> upon the instalment plan, the entire work being<br /> delivered upon receipt of the order and the first<br /> payment.<br /> These and other &quot;insidious devices for sup-<br /> planting the bookseller must lie met, if they<br /> are to be met at all, by the more effective<br /> organisation of his trade.&quot; Follow the example<br /> of Germany—says the Dial. If the American<br /> bookseller, by co-operating with the publishers,<br /> could arrange that his customers should have<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 205 (#217) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> copies of books on approbation—or, in the<br /> phrase so common in England, &quot;on sale or<br /> return &quot;—there would no longer be any real com-<br /> petition between the two classes, but a relation<br /> of mutual helpfulness that would impel each of<br /> them to cherish the interests of the other. But,<br /> beyond all suggestions of this kind, the future of<br /> bookselling does not seem to the Dial to be<br /> unpromising. There is the broad general fact<br /> that the appetite for books is constantly growing<br /> among the population, and it is folly to assume<br /> that book stores will be lacking to satisfy this<br /> appetite, &quot; since the book-buyer, as a rule, wants<br /> to inspect his books before buying, and the retail<br /> trade in books is as sure of customers as the retail<br /> trade in eggs and poultry. That trade, we have<br /> not the least doubt, will emerge triumphant from<br /> its seeming temporary eclipse, but it will be<br /> adapted to the new conditions, it will be<br /> reorganised to meet the new demands, and it<br /> will be willing to find in its larger sales a com-<br /> pensation for its lessened percentage of profit.&quot;<br /> PAEIS NOTES.<br /> THE sudden death of Georges Rodenbach on<br /> Christmas night, at the comparatively<br /> early age of forty-three years, made a<br /> vast impression here on the literary world. The<br /> papers had not yet notified his illness when the<br /> tidings reached us that the well-known poet and<br /> novelist, the friend of Alphonse Daudet and<br /> Edmond de Goncourt, had already rejoined his<br /> illustrious comrades in that shadowy land from<br /> whence no traveller returneth. Born at Tournai<br /> and brought up at Brussels, he depicted the<br /> subtle poesy enveloping the &quot;dead city which<br /> mirrors its ancient towers in its motionless<br /> canals&quot; with wonderful graphic force, joined to a<br /> languorous, lotus-like charm, the outcome of an<br /> intensely analytic and reflective mind which<br /> possessed in no ordinary degree the power of<br /> placing picturesquely before the reader the<br /> smallest detail, the most hazy outline of the<br /> various canvasses on which he worked so untir-<br /> ingly. He especially delighted in the sonorous<br /> melody of church bells; and as Victor Hugo<br /> bequeathed to the bells of Notre Dame the<br /> immortal spirit of Quasimodo, so the Belgian<br /> endowed the cathedral bells of his native land<br /> with a living soul. Among his most celebrated<br /> works on this subject may be mentioned &quot;Le<br /> Carillonneur,&quot; &quot;Bruges la Morte,&quot; and &quot;Le<br /> Voile,&quot; which last was performed with great<br /> success at the Com^die Francaise. A cortege of<br /> devoted friends and fellow-workers—MM. Sully<br /> Prudhomme, Anatole France, de Heredia, Leon<br /> Dierx, Rodin, and Emile Verhaeren (the latter<br /> having come from Brussels expressly to assist at<br /> the interment)—bore the body of Georges Roden-<br /> bach to its last resting-place, and M. Catulle<br /> Mendes, in the funeral oration delivered at Pere-<br /> Lachaise, rendered a graceful and touching<br /> tribute to the memory of his brother poet:<br /> &quot;dont personne ne saurait dire qu&#039;il est mort<br /> tout entier.&quot; A complete novel, entitled &quot; Made-<br /> moiselle Noémi, and a large collection of verses<br /> were found among Georges Rodenbach&#039;s unpub-<br /> lished works.<br /> The Academy has again a vacant fauteuil owing<br /> to the death of M. Edouard Herve, one of the two<br /> journalists cited in our last issue as completing<br /> the tale of literati belonging to that illustrious<br /> body. M. Herve was the founder of the first<br /> large daily newspaper issued at a halfpenny, and it<br /> is not as the refined and cultured lettre but as the<br /> editor and originator of Le Soleil that his name<br /> will be remembered by the public at large. He<br /> belonged to the punctilious, old-fashioned Prevost-<br /> Paradol school of journalists, and the only rash<br /> act recorded of him during his long public career<br /> is the challenge sent to Edmond About on the<br /> appearance of a certain article, containing more<br /> gall than honey, in the Dix-Neuvieme Siecle,<br /> which the latter was then editing. M. Herve<br /> leaves two works almost completed, of which one<br /> is reported to deal largely with Richelieu.<br /> The 2 5 9th anniversary of the birth of Racine<br /> was fitly commemorated at the two great national<br /> theatres (the Odeon and Comedie Francaise) by<br /> various excerpts from the most celebrated<br /> works of the famous dramatists, while various<br /> journals devoted a column more or less to<br /> enumerating his titles to the gratitude of posterity.<br /> The previous revival of &quot;Britannicus&quot; (Theatre<br /> Antoine) evoked, however, as little enthusiasm<br /> among the nineteenth century spectators as in<br /> the far-off days when Boileau was forced to<br /> undertake the defence of this powerful but tedious<br /> masterpiece. It is easier to revive the costumes<br /> of the past than to put the public in sympathy<br /> with the exaggerated hyperbole of our forefathers.<br /> A neat adaptation of modern sentiment in<br /> ancient garb is both picturesque and lucrative,<br /> whereof the success of &quot;Cyrano de Bergerac&quot;<br /> witnesseth; and in framing their playbills,<br /> theatrical managers would do well to bear in<br /> mind the present predilection for modern tableaux<br /> in antiquated settings.<br /> In the early dawn of the bicycle furore a<br /> sapient professor of the Sorbonne opined that its<br /> universal adoption would prove a harmless<br /> safety-valve for the superfluous feminine energy<br /> otherwise likely to be devoted to fomenting an<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 206 (#218) ############################################<br /> <br /> 206<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> interior domestic revolution in France. But he<br /> was mistaken. The bicycle furore and the<br /> Feminist agitation have developed amicably side<br /> by side, and the fact that only last month the<br /> Fourth Chamber of the Seine Tribunal pro-<br /> nounced no less than 284 divorces in the short<br /> space of four hours makes us understand why<br /> the divorce question is so hotly discussed and so<br /> variously represented by the rising generation<br /> of French writers. Among the host of new<br /> play8 which have recently appeared on this<br /> subject, two have especially attracted attention<br /> and comparison—not only from their striking<br /> similarity in plot, but also from the totally<br /> different reception they have received from the<br /> hands of the public. I allude to &quot;Le Berceau&quot;<br /> by M. Brieux, and &quot;Le Voyage autour du Code&quot;<br /> by MM. Duval and Hennequin; the former,<br /> despite the powerful support of M. Francisque<br /> Sarcey, having been assailed by a storm of<br /> invidious criticism, while the latter has been<br /> applauded and acclaimed to the skies. Unfortu-<br /> nately, each successive work of M. Brieux has<br /> fallen short of (he high expectations originally<br /> formed of his talent; his style is too speculative,<br /> his characters are too negative and abstract to<br /> awaken the genuine enthusiasm of the gallery<br /> gods on whose support he relies, and the bids he<br /> makes for popular favour in the shape of<br /> hackneyed situations materially decrease the<br /> value of his later work.<br /> Apropos of Francisque Sarcey, the doyen of<br /> the critics, &quot;notre bon Oncle Francisque,&quot; as the<br /> Parisians love to call him, a good story is in<br /> circulation relating to the volume of poems<br /> which Mlle. Yvette Guilbert is about to publish.<br /> The petite histoire, which has vastly amused the<br /> Parisians, is as follows. M. Sarcey, having one<br /> night mislaid his ordinary rose-coloured spec-<br /> tacles, found Mlle. Guilbert&#039;s voice no longer to<br /> his taste. He forthwith expressed his opinion<br /> in print, and was unwary enough to visit the<br /> Scala the following night. Immediately the<br /> sprightly divette came on the scene she turned<br /> towards the critic&#039;s box and began to sing the<br /> well-known refrain:<br /> Chamean!<br /> 0, le chamean,<br /> saluting M. Sarcey at each recurrence of the word<br /> &quot;chameau,&quot; while, to the accompaniment of the<br /> orchestra, the public yelled:<br /> M on oncle!<br /> O, mon oncle!<br /> until the unlucky critic was forced to beat a<br /> retreat. The controversy still continues, and it<br /> is to avenge herself for the biting critiques on<br /> her performance which followed this; scene that<br /> Mlle. Yvette Guilbert is reported to have entered<br /> the literary lists as a versificator.<br /> The &quot;Leonard de Vinci &quot; of M. Eugene Muntz<br /> (librairie Hachette) is the most complete and<br /> copious biography of the great painter, sculptor,<br /> man of letters, mathematician, and architect,<br /> that has yet been produced. But in this depart-<br /> ment M. Muntz has few equals, and the popula-<br /> rity attained by his &quot; Raphael, sa vie, son ceuvres<br /> et son temps,&quot; &quot;Precurseurs de la Renaissance,&quot;<br /> &quot;Donatello,&quot; &quot;La Renaissance en Italie,&quot; &amp;c.,<br /> ensure the success of his present venture. His<br /> latest volume contains reproductions of all the<br /> works either attributed or authentically proven<br /> to owe their existence to the brush or chisel of<br /> the great Italian master.<br /> The collectors of historical souvenirs and heir-<br /> looms recently experienced a shock on learning,<br /> through the agency of the Figaro, that, at the<br /> late sale of the Charles Yriarte collection, a choice<br /> relic—the only authentic photograph of Daguerre&#039;s<br /> portrait of Balzac, which the famous novelist<br /> had himself presented to Gavarni—had been<br /> sold for thirty francs! The original plaque was<br /> preserved in a villa at St. Cloud until Jan. 26,<br /> 1871, when it was destroyed by a Bavarian<br /> soldier, and the supposed only authentic photo-<br /> graphic copy thus cheaply disposed of bore an<br /> inscription in Charles Yriarte&#039;s handwriting<br /> which concluded thus: &quot;The historian of Balzac,<br /> Viscount Spoelberg de Lovenjoul, presented me<br /> with this token as a souvenir of the original<br /> portrait now destroyed.&quot; The lamentations of<br /> the perturbed corps of literary collectors and<br /> connoisseurs were, however, soon cut short by the<br /> arrival of a letter from the Viscount Spoelberg<br /> de Lovenjoul himself, stating that the portrait<br /> sold was merely a copy of the original photo-<br /> graph, which last formed one of the most precious<br /> jewels of his own Balzacien collection. Whereat<br /> the respective sentiments of the collectors and<br /> actual purchaser underwent a speedy transforma-<br /> tion.<br /> The lovers of Pierre Loti&#039;s dainty verses will<br /> be glad to hear that Conquet has just issued an<br /> &quot;exquise nouvelle japonaise,&quot; entitled &quot;La<br /> Chanson des Vieux lipoux,&quot; by this charming<br /> author. The booklet is enriched with water-<br /> coloured sketches by Henry Somno. This is<br /> probably the last work we shall have for some<br /> time from the e?er-juvenile Immortal, who is now<br /> at Hendaye busily engaged in preparing his<br /> trunks for a Persian trip.<br /> M. Paul Bourget is still enjoying the tranquility<br /> of his charming villa near Hylres, as is his usual<br /> custom during this inclement season. He usually<br /> devotes himself entirely to literary work during<br /> the first two or three months of the year. At the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 207 (#219) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 207<br /> present moment the Revue Hebdomadaire is<br /> publishing the second series of his famous<br /> &quot;Voyageuses,&quot; in which we find again the<br /> &quot;Gladys&quot; of &quot;Claude Larcher.&quot; We regret<br /> that space will not permit ns to quote a<br /> few extracts from the wonderfully graphic<br /> word-paintings of surrounding scenery with<br /> which this work abounds. M. Bourget is also<br /> engaged on a psychological novel, entitled<br /> &quot;Reine Verdit-r,&quot; which will shortly appear in<br /> Les Annale*.<br /> The &quot;Femmes Nouvelles&quot; of the brothers<br /> Margueritte is extremely ri propos at this moment,<br /> when the Feminist question forms one of the<br /> topics of the day in all fin de siecle salons. MM.<br /> Margueritte are now hard at work in preparing<br /> &quot;Les Troncons du Glaive,&quot; a novel dealing with<br /> national defence, which will form a continuation<br /> to the &quot;Desastre.&quot; Immediately the former is<br /> in the press, they will commence a third volume<br /> on the same lines, entitled &quot;La Commune.&quot;<br /> The popularity of the &quot;Desastre&quot; certainly<br /> justifies a sequel, and, if the two later works<br /> equal their predecessor in interest, the trilogy<br /> cannot fail to attain a great literary and<br /> pecuniary success.<br /> Mme. Jean Bertheroy does not occupy herself<br /> with any of the vexed questions relating to her<br /> sex. She lives a life apart in her quiet hermitage<br /> at Montmorency, too enveloped in the glamour of<br /> the past to desire to take part in the burning<br /> topics of the present moment. She has now<br /> three works on hand: the first, entitled &quot;La<br /> Dame de Pompeii,&quot; which deals entirely with that<br /> far-off period when Pompeii figured on the maps<br /> of the ancient world; the second, entitled &quot; Le<br /> Journal de Marguerite Plantin,&quot; dealing with the<br /> old Musee Plantin at Anvers, which two hundred<br /> years ago figured as a printing establishment;<br /> and the third, &quot; Le Jardin des Tolosatti,&quot; which<br /> presents us to no less a personage than the cele-<br /> brated Clemence Isaure, who instituted the floral<br /> sports in 1490. Perhaps, after all, Mme. Ber-<br /> theroy is more permeated by the spirit of the<br /> present age than she would care to acknow-<br /> ledge; else, wherefore her choice of the latter<br /> subject?<br /> M. Victorien Sardou has no love for reporters,<br /> and delights in putting them off his trail if<br /> possible. Despite his precautions, however,<br /> sundry details of the work on which he is now<br /> engaged have leaked out, and the fact that his<br /> apartment is encumbered with a prodigious pile<br /> of documentary lore relating to the period of the<br /> Revolution, gives colour to the assertion that we<br /> shall shortly have either a drama or prose study<br /> of &quot;Robespierre&quot; from the pen of the famous<br /> dramatist. [This is confirmed by the announce-<br /> ment that M. Sardou has written a play on<br /> Robespierre for Sir Henry Irving, who will<br /> signalise his return to the Lyceum by producing<br /> it.—Ed., A.]<br /> M. Marcel Prcvost has just returned from a<br /> lecturing tour in Holland, which he undertook at<br /> the invitation of the Alliance for the propagation<br /> of French literature abroad. In addition to<br /> holding the pen of a ready writer, M. Prevost<br /> possesses in perfection the art of a ready and<br /> interesting speaker. Needless to add that he<br /> received a warm reception in the Netherlands,<br /> and that the tour was a great success. &quot;George<br /> Sand, sa vie et son ceuvre,&quot; formed the subject of<br /> his lecture.<br /> Bon chien chasse de race, as a visit to M. Leon<br /> Daudet&#039;s study amply testifies. &quot;Sebastien<br /> Gouves,&quot; a thick volume recording the miseries<br /> meted out to a man of genius by unworthy<br /> charlatans, from whom he is finally rescued by<br /> filial devotion, stands completed; &quot;La Con-<br /> seillere,&quot; a domestic drama long promised the<br /> Odeon, is receiving its finishing touches; and<br /> (most interesting of all!) a species of pamphlet-<br /> causerie &quot; La Dignite de la litterature,&quot; is also<br /> under way. Of the latter he says: &quot;The matter<br /> is vast, and I treat it without reticence.&quot; He is<br /> likewise contemplating the filling-in of a numerous<br /> list of sketches of future dramas, comedies, novels,<br /> pamphlets, &amp;c.—a work sufficient in itself to<br /> fill the lifetime of several ordinary writers. But<br /> Leon Daudet cannot be considered as an ordinary<br /> writer; he is the exceptionally clever inheritor of<br /> a famous patronymic, and this fact has un-<br /> doubtedly influenced both his character and choice<br /> of a caieer.<br /> M. Eugene Rostand, poet, orator, journalist,<br /> historian, founder of numerous patriotic and<br /> useful institutions for the benefit of the poorer<br /> classes, and last—but by no means least—father<br /> of the celebrated author of &quot; Cyrano de Bergerac,&quot;<br /> has recently been elected a member of the<br /> Academic des Sciences, Morales, et Politiques. The<br /> dramatic genius of M. Edmond Rostand may<br /> thus be considered as the direct perpetuation of a<br /> hereditary talent. Recent inquiries have also<br /> unearthed the interesting fact that, in addition<br /> to having broken the existing record in the<br /> theatrical world, &quot;Cyrano de Bergerac &quot; (in book<br /> form) has numerically scored one of the greatest<br /> literary successes hitherto known in France.<br /> Darracotte Dene.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 208 (#220) ############################################<br /> <br /> 2o8 THE AUTHOR.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> IN &quot;The Pen and the Book,&quot; which was<br /> advertised in last month&#039;s Author, nothing<br /> is advanced which has not been put<br /> forward again and again, not only in this<br /> paper, but in the reports and circulars of<br /> the Society. Nothing can be argued against<br /> these points which has not been argued again and<br /> again in a hundred letters written to protest<br /> against the wicked authors who desire to know<br /> what the management of their own property<br /> actually means. But our friends are never tired<br /> of protesting. They are always ready to mis-<br /> represent and to distort and to conceal, over and<br /> over again, even in the teeth of notorious facts<br /> and the steady extension of the light. Therefore<br /> I was not surprised to find in Literature a letter<br /> based on a long series of the most daring state-<br /> ments ever put forward. Think, for instance, of<br /> a publisher, after all these years of the Society&#039;s<br /> action, imagining that such statements as the<br /> following can be believed:<br /> (i.) &quot;In profit-sharing agreements the author<br /> has a voice in the choice of printer and binder,<br /> and often knows beforehand what the estimate<br /> is.&quot;<br /> I have seen hundreds of agreements of the kind<br /> but never one with such a clause.<br /> (2.) &quot;Wilful overcharging can only be tested<br /> by giving definite accounts from definite indi-<br /> viduals. As these are not furnished the general<br /> charge may be dismissed as unworthy of con-<br /> sideration.&quot;<br /> In another paper of the same date, another<br /> publisher is actually confessing to the practice<br /> and defending it!<br /> (3.) He says that in publishers&#039; commission—<br /> a. Fees are never charged.<br /> On the contrary fees are constantly charged.<br /> /3. That &quot;percentages are the creation of<br /> prejudiced counsel.&quot; Really! Tet the<br /> Publishers&#039; Association in their draft<br /> agreements claim the right—actually<br /> the right—of adding percentages in<br /> commission publishing, on every item,<br /> and what they please!<br /> y. That authors are asked to suggest the<br /> medium of advertising. I never heard<br /> of any such invitation. I have, however,<br /> heard of a certain sum named for adver-<br /> tisements and of its expenditure in the<br /> publisher&#039;s own organs.<br /> He says also that publishers do not &quot;care a<br /> rap &quot; for commission business. Why, the number<br /> of such publications is simply enormous and is<br /> increasing every year.<br /> There are also many passages &quot; quoted,&quot; i.e., in<br /> inverted commas or without, which I have been<br /> unable to find in the book.<br /> He further attacks certain printers&#039; estimates<br /> given by me. He may attack the printers as<br /> much as he likes. It is their business, not mine.<br /> If he means that I have invented the estimates,<br /> that is another point altogether.<br /> The rest of his letter is answered by me in<br /> Literature. .<br /> The reason why I mention the matter here is<br /> that one or two points are raised about which we<br /> cannot be too clear in all dealings with publishers.<br /> These are:—<br /> 1. Overcharges.<br /> Remember that in every partnership or joint<br /> enterprise, if one partner spends .£i00 and says he<br /> has spent .£120, secretly pocketing the odd sum, he<br /> is regarded as a Thief. Apply the principle to<br /> publishing. A man may make any excuses he<br /> pleases about secretly taking discounts, but the<br /> fact—the broad, disagreeable fact—remains that<br /> he who deceives his partner, and makes secret<br /> profits by his misrepresentations, is a Thief.<br /> And this fact is the real cause of nearly the whole<br /> hostility that has been displayed towards the<br /> Society from the outset.<br /> 2. Advertisements.<br /> The power of charging for advertisements in a<br /> publisher&#039;s own organ, is simply the power of<br /> taking to himself, if he pleases, the whole pro-<br /> ceeds of the book.<br /> I have had several letters on the subject—some<br /> of them important: some trivial. It is important<br /> to be told by one that a certain publisher of<br /> standing confessed to him that a large part of<br /> his profits consisted of secret discounts. Another,<br /> also important, from a former employe&quot; in a pub-<br /> lisher&#039;s house—&quot; one of the new firms &quot;—reveals,<br /> if it is true, a system of systematic robbery. I wish<br /> the firm in question could read what is written<br /> about them by an ^.-employ i. It may be said,<br /> of course, that the old servant was spitefully<br /> bringing false charges. Perhaps ; therefore I do<br /> not quote his words: but it is not a false charge<br /> to offer a word of practical advice. &quot;Now is<br /> the time for some of the authors to have their<br /> accounts examined thoroughly — not for the<br /> past half year only, but where they have been<br /> running some time, especially for any books that<br /> have had a great sale: every voucher &quot; and every<br /> record of sales as the books have been sold to be<br /> seen.&quot;<br /> Perhaps something practical may be the out-<br /> come of this correspondence. The case is, as I<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 209 (#221) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 209<br /> have always pointed out, entirely in our own<br /> hands. It depends simply on authors being able<br /> to overcome their old prejudices and jealousies<br /> and to act together. If they show any power of<br /> common action, the battle is won at a single coup.<br /> For four reasons I did not send out &quot; The Pen<br /> and the Book&quot; for review. First, because the<br /> book was not written for the general public at<br /> all, but for the literary aspirant. Secondly,<br /> because a part of the book—that containing the<br /> facts and figures concerning the commercial side<br /> of publishing, are Greek and Hebrew to the<br /> reviewer, who will be quite prepared to believe<br /> the first publisher who tells him that they are<br /> invented—some of them are already beginning<br /> this little perjury; thirdly, because I think that<br /> it is time for authors to have a voice in the<br /> papers in which they invite a review; and, lastly,<br /> because I think it would be well in the case of a<br /> book which is certain to awaken all the old<br /> hostility to the work of the Society, to let the<br /> animus be shown in uninvited comments from<br /> those who love the secret profits, and the fine old<br /> vague talk about risk, and expense, and loss, to<br /> which we have been accustomed for the last six<br /> years. The hostility is silent for a while, then it<br /> breaks out again with the stale old allegations<br /> and distortions.<br /> For these reasons also I have not yet adver-<br /> tised the book. I shall do so after, not before,<br /> the first free flow of invective. Meantime,<br /> I may be believed by our members, I hope, when<br /> I state that I have not published this book<br /> with the desire of making money by it: that I<br /> am, above all things, desirous of seeing it read and<br /> studied by the class for whom it is intended: and<br /> that I can think of no better way than to get it<br /> into the free libraries. Therefore, since a very<br /> large number of these libraries have great difficulty<br /> in buying all the books they would like to have, I<br /> shall be very much obliged to the readers of these<br /> columns if they will send me the names and<br /> addresses of the free libraries in their neighbour-<br /> hood. I do not mean village libraries, but those<br /> of cities and town*. I propose, therefore, to set<br /> apart 300 copies, and will have them forwarded<br /> as presentation copies to the address given. If<br /> the member would like to give a copy himself, I<br /> can have it sent to him direct, and will leave it<br /> to him to give the library. I should like letters<br /> on this subject addressed to me at Hampstead,<br /> and in case of any considerable response I will<br /> undertake to have the books sent in order of<br /> application.<br /> As an illustration of the decay of the book<br /> trade, a circular has been sent to me by a<br /> correspondent in Bradford, Yorkshire. It<br /> announces the melancholy fact that one of the<br /> leading booksellers in the town is giving up the<br /> sale of books altogether. The firm says, in this<br /> circular: &quot;Bookselling has been very unremu-<br /> nerative for many years past, and as we require<br /> the room for our quickly increasing stationery<br /> trade, we have decided to give up bookselling<br /> altogether.&quot; My correspondent adds: &quot;There are<br /> 300,000 inhabitants in this city. There is not<br /> one shop now selling new books, and nothing else.<br /> And there is only one second-hand bookseller.&quot;<br /> Meantime it is nearly a year since the Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association sent out its proposals and<br /> since the Society of Authors considered those<br /> proposals. Are they going to propose any new<br /> method? It must be remembered that the prin-<br /> cipal features of the former scheme were—(1) to<br /> tax the public by adding something like 11 per<br /> cent. to the price of a book; (2) to take an addi-<br /> tional twopence or so on a six shilling volume<br /> for themselves; (3) to give the bookseller an<br /> additional fourpence or so; and (4) to give the<br /> author nothing more at all. They also propose to<br /> strike at the root of freedom and independence<br /> by refusing to allow the bookseller to treat his<br /> own property as he pleases. These proposals,<br /> therefore, were rejected. In any new ones it is<br /> certain that the public must not be taxed ; that<br /> the booksellers&#039; position must be improved; and<br /> that the publishers must suffer some loss. The<br /> authors will find out what that is, and take steps<br /> accordingly. It is, of course, too much to hope<br /> that the publishers will openly place the real<br /> figures before the authors and the booksellers.<br /> We must do that for them.<br /> The proposal that the author shall pay a<br /> certain sum of money towards the publication of<br /> his book is now, I am assured by the Secretary,<br /> becoming much more common with publishers than<br /> was formerly the case when reputable persons<br /> would not produce a book, or offer to produce a<br /> book, with such help from the author. To propose<br /> it would have seemed to show either a disbelief<br /> in the book or the poverty of the house. When<br /> the amount asked for is equivalent to the whole<br /> cost of production, or more, it means that the<br /> publisher may gain a great deal and cannot lose.<br /> A variant has lately appeared. 1 saw recently<br /> an offer which at first sight seemed quite &quot; sport-<br /> ing.&quot; The publisher offered a royalty of 40 per<br /> cent. on the first 500 copies, and then 15 per cent.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 210 (#222) ############################################<br /> <br /> 2IO<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> for all copies to follow. This seemed really<br /> noble! The royalty, if the book was a 6*. one,<br /> meant over 2s. 4d. a copy for 500 copies and<br /> iOjrf. for all following copies. Very pretty,<br /> indeed. What does a grumbling, greedy, grasp-<br /> ing Society think of that? Well, it meant a firm<br /> belief in the future success of the book, because<br /> the first royalty must mean a dead loss on 500<br /> copies. Thus, for a tolerably large edition, costing<br /> with advertising is. a copy, or, say, .£150, after<br /> the first 500 copies, the publisher would lose<br /> .£130 approximately. After the first 1000, he<br /> would be a loser of .£65. After the next 1000 he<br /> would be a gainer of .£65. After the third 1000<br /> he would be a gainer of £ 195. In every follow-<br /> ing 1000 the difference between the author and<br /> himself would be enlarged. You now see the<br /> true generosity of this offer.<br /> But, somehow, he distrusted his own proposal<br /> after all, for he supplemented it by a suggestion<br /> that if the author would kindly advance a<br /> certain sum on the cost of the book he should<br /> have such a number of the books sent to<br /> him as he could retail among his friends<br /> for the double. A hundred per cent. profit!<br /> Who could resist such a temptation Y And<br /> what a beautiful prospect of publishing in<br /> the near future opens out before us! We<br /> are to pay a publisher for producing the book<br /> (which is done by the printer), and we are<br /> then to sell the book ourselves. We shall have<br /> to hawk it about at dinner parties: in clubs: on<br /> the golf links: wo shall stand at church doors<br /> with the books in a basket: between the acts we<br /> shall offer it to the stalls: we shall insert an<br /> advertisement of the book in every private letter:<br /> we shall send slips describing the book to all our<br /> friends: we shall engage those who are near to<br /> us to join in this charming excursion into retail<br /> lines. There is no end to the dignity, the<br /> honour, the glory that awaits Literature when<br /> this nobleman—I must anticipate tlie distinction<br /> that awaits him—has succeeded in persuading<br /> authors to accept his proposals.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> MILTON&#039;S HOETON.<br /> BY common consent Milton is considered<br /> our second greatest poet, and therefore<br /> Milton&#039;s shrine (or shrines) should rank<br /> only second in interest to that of Shakespeare.<br /> Yet for a hundred pilgrims who visit Stratford-<br /> on-Avon there is not probably more than one<br /> who betakes him to Horton, or Chalfont, or even<br /> to Cripplegate. This is partly accounted for by<br /> the fact that all Shakespeare&#039;s life was connected<br /> more or less with Stratford; but Milton<br /> wandered much. Part of his youth was spent<br /> at Horton, in Buckinghamshire, and his latter<br /> days in London. He wrote&quot; Comus,&quot; &quot; L&#039;Allegro,&quot;<br /> &quot;II Penseroso,&quot; and, perhaps, &quot;Lycidas&quot; at<br /> Horton; and therefore it seems fitting that the<br /> literary pilgrim should think about Milton in the<br /> fields and woods of Buckinghamshire before<br /> seeking his more frequented shrine in the City of<br /> London.<br /> John Milton, the poet&#039;s father, was a scrivener<br /> in Bread-street, London, where his son was<br /> born; he retired from business, and went to live<br /> at Horton. Thither the son also retired at the<br /> age of twenty-four, and his pastoral poems appear<br /> to have been the expression of his peace and<br /> contentment in that rural home. This was after<br /> his scholastic life at Cambridge, and before his<br /> foreign travel and all the storm and stress which<br /> tossed him about in his maturer years. We could<br /> ill afford to lose the product of the five years<br /> passed so tranquilly at Horton.<br /> It may be true, as the late Mark Pattison<br /> remarks in his volume on Milton in the English<br /> Men of Letters Series, that this poet&#039;s love of<br /> Nature was chiefly academical; that he regarded<br /> Nature as he thought she ought to be regarded,<br /> and as the Latin poets had regarded her; that<br /> he did not look at her with the close and<br /> original observation of a naturalist or a painter;<br /> that he wrote of her from a subjective point of<br /> view, describing not so much Nature herself as<br /> the feelings which she awakens in one whose<br /> outer eyes are half-closed, and whose spirit takes<br /> in but vague suggestions. Yet, oven so, why not r&lt;<br /> Nature&#039;s visible moods have been chronicled by<br /> many poets, of whom the foremost is Wordsworth;<br /> the influence of Nature reflected on the mind of a<br /> student and scholar has been exquisitely indicated<br /> by Milton. And what did he see at Horton which<br /> could suggest the lovely lines of his pastorals, and<br /> infuse into them a grace which makes them, even<br /> now, household words&#039;? And what do we see<br /> when we visit the Buckinghamshire village, so<br /> near to the metropolis, yet so apart from the rush<br /> of life? It is practically the very Horton of the<br /> seventeenth century; a church, two or three<br /> gentlemen&#039;s houses, and a score of scattered<br /> cottages; its tale of deaths is about eight a year,<br /> and of weddings it sees about one in three years.<br /> We behold the very scene which Milton saw.<br /> Wraysbury Station is situated on the sluggish<br /> Colne, which is here utilised for a mill; there is<br /> a sound of water falling gently over a small weir,<br /> and a few feet lower all is placid again. From<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 211 (#223) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 21 I<br /> the station we walk on a dusty unshaded road for<br /> the distance of a mile; on either side are ditches,<br /> banks, and hedges, revelling in all the riot of<br /> June; roses star the hedges, and privet thrusts<br /> forward its thick white fingers; forget-me-not<br /> and meadow-sweet nod above the still water in the<br /> broad ditch. Overhead in the fathomless blue the<br /> lark is shaking down his &quot;delirious music &quot;; the<br /> swallow skims over the field where men are lazily<br /> turning the thin crop of hay.<br /> We pass a weed-grown marsh, and, turning to<br /> the left, soon come upon the Colne again; here it<br /> moves another mill, of which the irregular out-<br /> buildings are reflected in the unrippled pool,<br /> making a pretty picture. A little further on and<br /> we are in the village, where even now the children<br /> drop curtseys to the stranger pilgrim. On the<br /> right is the red-brick lodge to the grounds of a<br /> modern private house which stands on the site<br /> of that occupied by John Milton, senior. Before<br /> building the present structure it was ascertained<br /> by the owner of the land that no vestige what-<br /> ever remained of the house wherein the great<br /> poet spent his only long spell of country life. On<br /> the left we come to the Five Bells Inn, so called,<br /> it is believed, because the inn is parish property<br /> and there are five bells in the church tower. At<br /> the time of the Queen&#039;s first jubilee there was<br /> some talk of adding another bell to the peal,<br /> but public opinion would not permit an act which<br /> would have rendered unintelligible the name of<br /> the old inn!<br /> A few steps further on is the church, the<br /> shrine to which we are travelling; that church in<br /> which Milton must have constantly worshipped.<br /> It is restored, and yet it is the ancient one; we<br /> enter, and the spirit of prayer is upon us. They<br /> should count themselves blest who can here<br /> worship with every surrounding of reverence and<br /> every privilege of devotion. Looking to the<br /> modern chancel, which speaks of frequent services,<br /> we see that the east window, newly placed there,<br /> is in memory of Milton.<br /> As to the fabric, it retains some most valuable<br /> features; the north porch is in the main a very<br /> ancient one, singularly wide; the door is set<br /> within an arch finely carved in rows of elaborate<br /> moulding. The interior, airy and spacious,<br /> shows us short, thick, Norman pillars; a massive<br /> stone font is also Norman, and has a cable mould-<br /> ing round the rim. As we walk about the church<br /> we see many stones beneath our feet commemo-<br /> rating the forefathers of the hamlet, and bearing<br /> dates of the 17th century. Just within the<br /> chancel is a dark grey slab of marble with this<br /> inscription: &quot;Heare lyeth the body of Sarah<br /> Milton, the widow of John Milton, who died the<br /> 3 of April, 1637.&quot; In the lives of famous men<br /> we usually find that the mother&#039;s influence played<br /> a great part; but in Milton&#039;s autobiographical<br /> writings little is said of his mother. Yet, by<br /> comparing dates, we discover that immediately<br /> after Sarah Milton&#039;s death her husband and his<br /> family left Horton, and never again lived in the<br /> country except during the short and unimportant<br /> stay at Chalfont St. Giles, also in Bucks; it would<br /> seem that the charm of rural quietude was broken<br /> by the death of the wife and mother. The<br /> widower returned to the busy bustle of London;<br /> the poet son set off on his continental travels.<br /> Here, at our feet, where &quot;the kneeling hamlet<br /> drains the chalice of the grapes of God,&quot; lie the<br /> remains of the mother of one of England&#039;s greatest<br /> poets; it is a spot which is, for every reason,<br /> very sacred to us.<br /> We leave the neatly-kept churchyard, littered<br /> only by rose leaves, and, passing through the<br /> lych-gate, proceed a little further into the village,<br /> noting the unfrequented roads and lanes sentinelled<br /> by elms, just as they were two hundred years<br /> ago. At one point a sudden opening reveals the<br /> grey outline of Windsor Castle, with its sturdy<br /> Bound Tower &quot;bosomed high in tufted trees.&quot;<br /> To Milton&#039;s eyes that tower appeared precisely as<br /> it does to ours this day—the crown of the<br /> royallest of all royal residences in Europe. This<br /> gap which arrests us for a long gaze is exactly<br /> facing the front door of Horton Rectory, which<br /> we now enter.<br /> Here we find the typical English parish priest<br /> —the man of culture and courtesy, with the sur-<br /> roundings of a good citizen. The house is partly<br /> old and partly new—the old probably of anterior<br /> date to Milton&#039;s days. He may have sat dreamily<br /> in this quaint and beautiful garden hall, seeing<br /> the bright flowers in the garden, hearing the<br /> twitter of birds and the humming of bees. Oak<br /> beams support the ceilings, and oak panels face<br /> the walls. Over everything is the hush of midday<br /> and midsummer, and quiet talk about the past<br /> and about the poet seems wholly in keeping with<br /> the same. And we feel ourselves presently in<br /> actual manual touch with Milton&#039;s days, for the<br /> rector brings forth a thin volume which contains<br /> the register of the burial of Sarah Milton, three<br /> days after her death. True, it is but copied from<br /> an older register, but this book is dated only a<br /> little later than the poet&#039;s death.<br /> After seeing all that is to be seen, and, indeed,<br /> little remains in any way connected with Milton,<br /> we take leave of the hospitable rectory, and go<br /> out again among the pasture fields and waving<br /> trees, and stretches of marshy ground, and<br /> glimpses of distant blue hills, and all those un-<br /> altered features of Nature, who retains her youth<br /> and freshness as long as man leaves her to her-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 212 (#224) ############################################<br /> <br /> 2 I 2<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> self. The pilgrim returns to the city which was,<br /> after all, Milton&#039;s chosen home; and in his<br /> memory will long dwell the picture of the little<br /> tranquil village and the cool, silent church. Often<br /> in his later years of blindness and trouble the<br /> poet must have re-imaged to himself those same<br /> scenes—his father&#039;s house, his mother&#039;s grave.<br /> F. Bayford Harrison.<br /> Ventnor Villa, Weybridge.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> L—William Black and the Saturday Review.<br /> TI THE story which you treat with some<br /> | scepticism in your &quot;Notes and News&quot;<br /> was one that our friend Black was fond<br /> of telling. Sir Wemyss Reid has stated that<br /> Black told him he brought out &quot;A Daughter<br /> of Heth&quot; anonymously because the Saturday<br /> had &quot;slated&quot; his previous novels. This was<br /> not a joke of Black&#039;s, but the literal fact.<br /> When the novel first came out Black and I<br /> were acting as assistant editors to Mr. Frank<br /> Hill at the Daily News. This work threw us,<br /> necessarily, much together, and I do not think<br /> anyone now living was more intimate with Black<br /> than I was in those happy days. He kept the<br /> secret of his book from all his friends, and I first<br /> knew that &quot; A Daughter of Heth&quot; was his when<br /> one night at the office he produced the paper with<br /> the favourable review, and showed it with a<br /> boyish glee at the &quot;rise&quot; he had taken out of<br /> his enemy. Of all our friend&#039;s literary triumphs,<br /> and they followed rapidly on the success of &quot;A<br /> Daughter of Heth,&quot; not one gave him such un-<br /> bounded satisfaction as this. The three years or<br /> so that he remained with us at the Daily News<br /> after this recognition of his genius, were the<br /> golden days of his early and rising fame, and he<br /> never forgot the friends nor the events of that<br /> exciting time.<br /> May I also suggest that the statement<br /> &quot;there were only two novels to &#039;slate &#039;&quot; in<br /> 1871 is not accurate. &quot;James Merle&quot; I never<br /> saw, but &quot;Love or Marriage&quot; and &quot;In Silk<br /> Attire&quot; were followed by &quot;Kilmeny,&quot; and that<br /> by &quot;The Monarch of Mincing Lane.&quot; I am not<br /> quite sure as to the order in which the last two<br /> appeared, but I think that if Black had put an<br /> author&#039;s name on the title-page of &quot;A Daughter<br /> of Heth,&quot; he would have described himself as<br /> the author of &quot;Kilmeny,&quot; which is the best of<br /> the novels of his earlier and unappreciated days.<br /> 1, Upper Woburn-place, P. W. Clayden.<br /> Jan. 5, 1899.<br /> II.—Type-writing as a Profession.<br /> Some members of the Society of Authors, who<br /> make it a matter of conscience, wherever possible,<br /> to help struggling people with work, may be<br /> interested in learning the system on which their<br /> typewriting will perhaps be done for them at<br /> certain offices.<br /> The manager of the office undertakes to type<br /> your work at, say, l0d. per thousand words. She<br /> also takes pupils in typewriting for three or six<br /> months, who pay her so many guineas as a<br /> premium.<br /> The manager takes your money and their pre-<br /> miums, and they do your work!<br /> It may be urged that there is nothing actually<br /> dishonest in this. The work is done at the price<br /> agreed, and the pupils learn to use, and have<br /> practice in using, a type-writer in return for the<br /> premium. But the net result is that your money<br /> goes into the hands not of the young women who<br /> type but of the astute manager (or more often<br /> manageress) who exploits them. Meantime, of<br /> course, offices managed on this system compete<br /> with the struggling individual typist, and as they<br /> not only pay nothing for their labour, but even<br /> are paid by their pupils for the privilege of doing<br /> the work, it is easy to see that the competition is<br /> severe.<br /> In order to combat this system I would<br /> suggest to members of the Society that they<br /> should, as far as possible, employ only typists<br /> who actually do their work themselves, and do<br /> not either farm it out (on the sweating system)<br /> to others, or, worse, use it as a means of getting<br /> premiums.<br /> In these hard times there are so many young<br /> women who type-write for a living, and find a<br /> diffioulty in earning a bare subsistence, that no one<br /> would willingly take the bread out of their mouths<br /> in order to enrich clever exploiters of other<br /> people&#039;s labour. T<br /> r r St. John E. C. Hankin.<br /> III. — Payment on Acceptance of Articles.<br /> I see one of your contributors brings a com-<br /> plaint against the Strand Magazine. I am un-<br /> connected with this periodical, and therefore<br /> know nothing of its justness; but there is one<br /> merit that the Strand Magazine possesses—in<br /> common, so far as my own wide experience<br /> goes, with but one other magazine, viz., the<br /> Woman at Home—for which it ought to receive<br /> the fullest praise. It pays on acceptance. Only<br /> the hardworking, modest contributor knows how<br /> much hardship and even suffering are inflicted by<br /> the unfair and unbusinesslike proceeding of the<br /> majority of magazines in paying on publication.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 213 (#225) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 213<br /> Can any of your readers suggest any legal means<br /> by which pressure could be put on such periodi-<br /> cals P Penman.<br /> IV.—Forms Wanted.<br /> Considering the constant difficulties that occur<br /> between editor and contributor respecting pay-<br /> ment, may I suggest that the Society provide<br /> printed forms for sale to its members which shall<br /> express in polite and businesslike terms all that<br /> is necessary for an unknown author to say when<br /> offering his work for publication.<br /> Another suggestion I venture to make, i.e., that<br /> the Society grant to those of its members and<br /> associates who care to make use of it, the right<br /> to put some distinguishing initials after their<br /> names.<br /> I have found by experience that careless and<br /> unprincipled persons frequently respect the<br /> Society, and do not lightly trifle with its<br /> members when they know them to be such.<br /> If isolated authors were to address editors in a<br /> businesslike tone, or should they make their<br /> membership of the Society too evident, it might<br /> offend. A Well-Wisher.<br /> QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.<br /> L<br /> &#039;Tis true that &#039;twas right to dissemble your love,<br /> But why did yon kick me down stairs?<br /> COULD any of your readers tell me where<br /> the above lines come from, and in connec-<br /> tion with what, if any, historical event or<br /> personage they were written? J. M. Lely.<br /> H.<br /> Will one of your readers kindly inform me<br /> which is the correct way to write this question:<br /> &quot;Who am I like ?&quot; or &quot; Whom am I like ?&quot; also<br /> which is the best way of expressing the following<br /> sentence: &quot;She wanders onward by the hedge<br /> oblivious of his presence, whomsoever he may<br /> be,&quot; or &quot; whoever he may be.&quot; Ignoramus.<br /> BOOK TALE.<br /> fl^HE most remarkable item of news this<br /> I month is the fact that Messrs. Methuen<br /> contemplate an interesting experiment in<br /> publishing. They are about to issue at six-<br /> pence, under the general title of &quot;Methuen&#039;s<br /> Library of Fiction,&quot; stories by well-known<br /> authors of the day. A few books will be<br /> reprints, but most will be new works hitherto un-<br /> published in book form. The first book thus<br /> published will be a new novel by Mr. E. W.<br /> Hornung. Mr. Robert Barr and Mr. Cutclitfe<br /> Hyne will follow, and later will be published<br /> books by Mr. Baring Gould aud others. In<br /> some cases the book will lie published simul-<br /> taneously at sixpence and at a higher price.<br /> Messrs. Methuen say that they &quot;recognise the<br /> inevitable tendencies of an age of cheap litera-<br /> ture. The theatre has its stalls and its pit, the<br /> railway its first and its third classes: so the<br /> novelist may well have a double audience, and,<br /> while the wealthy will still pay 6*. for their<br /> novels, those of limited means may purchase<br /> the same book in a decent but less luxurious<br /> form.&quot;<br /> Other examples of sixpenny books are two<br /> volumes of Lord Tennyson&#039;s Poems, which<br /> Messrs. Macmillan are issuing. The first will<br /> contain all the earlier poems and &quot; In Memoriam,&quot;<br /> and the second will contain &quot;Maud.&quot;<br /> Benjamin Swift&#039;s next book, entitled &quot;Siren<br /> City,&quot; is virtually a study of Puritanism versus<br /> Paganism. The title refers to Naples, the scene<br /> being laid in the old Maddaloni Palace there.<br /> The first chapter, however, begins, and the last<br /> closes, in London. The work will appear during<br /> the spring.<br /> &#039;. Accessory Before the Fact &quot; is the title of a<br /> new book by Mrs. Leith Adams (Mrs. R. S. de<br /> Courcy Lafl&#039;an), which Mebsrs. Digby, Long, and<br /> Co. are publishing.<br /> Dr. A. Conan Doyle is naming his new novel<br /> &quot;A Duet with an Occasional Chorus.&quot; It is the<br /> story of the happy married life of a young couple<br /> of the middle class. It has not appeared serially,<br /> and it will be published next month.<br /> Mr. S. R. Crockett&#039;s story, &quot;A Woman of<br /> Fortune,&quot; will be published by Messrs. Hodder<br /> and Stoughton. It has been appearing in<br /> monthly instalments in the Woman at Home.<br /> Miss Ethel Hynam is editing, for publication<br /> by Mr. Elliot Stock, a new series of folk tales<br /> entitled &quot; The European Folk Tale Series.&quot; The<br /> collection will represent Russian, Mongolian,<br /> Slavonic, Polish, Bohemian, and Servian tales,<br /> each volume containing the tales of one country.<br /> The first, entitled &quot;The Secrets of the Night/&#039;<br /> contains examples of Esthonian folk stories, and<br /> will be illustrated by Mr. H. Oakes-Jones.<br /> Mr. Stanley&#039;s &quot; Through the Dark Continent,&quot;<br /> is being published in eighteen sixpenny parts by<br /> Messrs. Newnes, by arrangement with Messrs.<br /> Sampson Low.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 214 (#226) ############################################<br /> <br /> 214<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Miss Mary Deane has written &quot;The History of<br /> the Family of Dean, Deane, and Adeane,&quot; which<br /> Mr. Elliot Stock will bring out shortly.<br /> An article on the poetesses of the day appears<br /> in the current number of the Quarterly Review.<br /> Mr. John Lane is about to publish in monthly<br /> parts an edition of White&#039;s &quot; Selborne,&quot; contain-<br /> ing notes by Mr. Grant Allen and pictures by Mr.<br /> E. H. New.<br /> Mr. Edward H. Cooper has passed for press a<br /> volume of short stories entitled &quot;Children, Race-<br /> horses, and Ghosts,&quot; which Messrs. Duckworth<br /> will publish this month. Mr. Cooper has also<br /> nearly completed a new racing novel called &quot; The<br /> Monk Wins.&quot; He has in view a series of fairy<br /> stories for publication in November.<br /> The awards of the Academy for the best books<br /> of the past year are as follows: 50 guineas to<br /> Mr. Sidney Lee for his &quot; Life of Shakespeare &quot;;<br /> 50 guineas to Mr. Maurice Hewlett for &quot;The<br /> Forest Lovers&quot;; 50 guineas to Mr. Joseph<br /> Conrad for his &quot; Tales of Unrest.&quot; It should be<br /> explained that the Academy&#039;s object in this<br /> enterprise is &quot; to seek for promise, sincerity, and<br /> thoroughness in literary art rather than to<br /> acknowledge fulfilment.&quot; Only two books were<br /> &quot;crowned &quot; in the previous year, but the selec-<br /> tion this year proved such a difficult matter that<br /> three prizes were awarded.<br /> Mr. Wirt Gerrare, author of &quot; The Warstock,&quot;<br /> is writing a historical tale treating of firearms on<br /> their introduction into Europe. The story is<br /> laid in France in the period of Jeanne d&#039;Arc.<br /> Mr. A. H. Evans, of Clare College, is the<br /> author of the ninth volume of the Cambridge<br /> Natural History, in which he treats of birds,<br /> essaying &quot;the difficult and apparently un-<br /> attempted task of including in some 600 pages<br /> a short description of nearly every form in very<br /> many of the families, and of the most typical or<br /> important of the innumerable species included in<br /> the large Passerine Order. Prefixed to each<br /> group is a. brief summary of the structure and<br /> habits.&quot;<br /> A volume of stories by Mr. Bernard Capes,<br /> entitled &quot;At a Winter&#039;s Fire,&quot; will be published<br /> shortly by Messrs. Pearson.<br /> Mr. F. Carruthers Gould has collected for publi-<br /> cation in volume form his political and other<br /> cartoons that have appeared in the Westminster<br /> Gazette during the last two years. They number<br /> rorty in all, and the volume will be published<br /> from the Westminster Gazette office in two<br /> editions shortly before the opening of Parlia-<br /> ment.<br /> Mr. Castell Coates has sent copies of his<br /> &quot;Fairy Book&quot; to H.M. the Queen and to Princess<br /> Henry of Battenberg, which have been graciously<br /> accepted by them.<br /> Colonel H. B. Hanna will produce early this<br /> month the first volume of the &quot;Second Afghan<br /> War; its Causes, its Conduct, and its Conse-<br /> quences,&quot; published by Messrs. A. Constable<br /> and Co.<br /> Mr. George Moore has re-written a large part<br /> of his latest novel, &quot; Evelyn Innes,&quot; which was<br /> published in June last, in view of a new edition.<br /> The alterations concern the middle chapters of<br /> the story, and principally affect the character Sir<br /> Owen Asher.<br /> Mr. William Sharp has written a tragic<br /> romance, entitled &quot; Silence Farm,&quot; and a volume<br /> of short stories, which will appear under the title<br /> &quot;Sister Eunice.&quot; He has also nearly ready for<br /> publication two volumes of literary criticism,<br /> namely, &quot; Studies in Contemporary Literature&quot;<br /> and &quot; From Delacroix to Whistler.&quot; A writer in<br /> the Daily Chronicle, by the way, suggests that<br /> Mr. Sharp and the author known as &quot;Fiona<br /> Macleod &quot; are identical.<br /> A mining story, by &quot;Victoria Cross,&quot; will be<br /> published by Messrs. Walter Scott. It is called<br /> &quot;A Girl of Klondike.&quot;<br /> Miss Florence Warden lays the scenes of her<br /> next novel in Scotland. The work has just been<br /> completed, and will appear under the title &quot;The<br /> Love that Lasts.&quot;<br /> &quot;The Letters of Robert Browning and Eliza-<br /> beth Barrett&quot; will appear on the 7th inst., from<br /> Messrs. Smith, Elder, and Co. These two<br /> volumes contain the love letters of the famous<br /> couple.<br /> A library of copyright works of fiction is being<br /> issued for the colonies and India by Messrs<br /> Chatto and Windus. The first of the series will<br /> be &quot; Infatuation,&quot; by Mrs. B. M. Croker, which<br /> was published a few weeks ago. This will be<br /> followed by Sir Walter Besant&#039;s &quot; St. Katherine&#039;s<br /> by the Tower,&quot; and works by other authors.<br /> The volumes in this new series are to sell at half-<br /> a-crown.<br /> Miss Beatrice Harraden is calling her new<br /> story, which is to be ready in April, &quot;The<br /> Fowler.&quot; The reference is to the passage in the<br /> Ptalms &quot;Our soul is escaped as a bird out of<br /> the snare of the fowler.&quot;<br /> The Rev. Dr. John Watson (Ian Maclaren)<br /> has finished his &quot; Life of Christ.&quot;<br /> The Queen has been graciously pleased to<br /> accept a copy of Mr. William Toynbee&#039;s book of<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 215 (#227) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 2&#039;5<br /> verse, &quot;On Oaten Flute,&quot; which was published<br /> last month by Mr. H. J. Glaisher of Wigmore-<br /> street.<br /> The initial chapters of Mr. G. S. Layard&#039;s work<br /> on &quot; Suppressed Plates&quot; (of the legitimate sort)<br /> are now appearing in the Pall Mall Magazine.<br /> A curious experiment in translation by the same<br /> author will be found in the Cortihill.<br /> Mr. Max Pemberton has dramatised his<br /> &quot;Kronstadt.&quot;<br /> THE BOOKS OF THE MONTH.<br /> [Dec. 23 to Jan. 23—208 Books.]<br /> Aitken, W. H. M. H. The Romance of Christian Work and Achieve-<br /> ment. Shaw.<br /> Anderson, J. W. The Power of Nature in Disease. 1/6 net. Simpkin.<br /> Andrews, W. (ed.). Bygone Church Life in Scotland. 7/6. Andrews.<br /> Andrews, W. (ed.). Ecclesiastical Curiosities. 7/6. Andrews.<br /> Annand, E. F. With the Tirah Field Force. 1/- Terry.<br /> Anonymous (*). Alone. An Introspective Work. 6/- net. Smithers.<br /> Anonymous (&quot; A Gentleman of the University of Cambridge.&quot;) The<br /> Tale of Archais. A Romance in Verse. 2/6. Paul.<br /> Anonymous (Author of &quot;A Desperate Remedy &quot;). In Sackcloth and<br /> Ashes. 16. Stevens.<br /> Anonymous (0. T. M.). Sonnets. 2/6. Edinburgh: R. W. Hunter.<br /> Archibald, D. Weather Types in Relation to Long-Period For coasting.<br /> Eyre and Spottiswoode.<br /> Arkwright, J. P. Cablnet-Making for Amateurs. 2/6. L. U. Gill.<br /> Arnold, A. W. The Attack on the Farm, and Other Stories 6/-<br /> Wnlte.<br /> Arumugam, S. From Siva to Christ. 1/- Marshall Bros.<br /> Bagsbawe, J. B. Rosary Meditations. 1/- Oath. Truth Soc,<br /> Bailey, G. H. Advanced Inorganic Chemistry. 3/6. Clive.<br /> Bailey, L. H. Sketch of the Evolution of Our Native [American]<br /> Fruits. 7/6 net. Macmillan.<br /> Bain, F. W. On the Realisation of the Possible, and the Spirit of<br /> Aristotle. 7/6. Parker.<br /> Ball, W. W. R. Notes on History of Trinity College, Cambridge.<br /> 2 6 net. Macmillan.<br /> Barry, William. The Two Standards. 6/- Unwin.<br /> Battersby, C. Song of the Golden Bough, and Other Poems. 3/6 net.<br /> Constable.<br /> Bennett, Lucy A. White Hyacinths, and Other Poems. 2/6.<br /> Marshall Bros.<br /> Benson, M., and Gourlay, J. Temple of Mut in Asher. 21/- Murray.<br /> Berry, A. Short History of Astronomy. 6/- Murray.<br /> Birrell, Augustine. Seven Lectures on the Law and History of Copy-<br /> right in Books. 3/6 net. Cassell.<br /> Birrell, Augustine. Oration on the Ideal University. 6d.<br /> University College Union Society.<br /> Bouvier, J, Encyclopaedic Dictionary of English and American Law.<br /> 507- net. Sweet and M.<br /> Briekdale, 0. F., and Sheldon, W. R. The Land Transfer Acta, 1875<br /> and 1897. 20/- Stevens.<br /> Bridges. M. M. A New Handwriting for Teachers. 5/- net. Frowde.<br /> Briggs, W., and Bryan. G. H. Tutorial Dynamics. 3 6. Clive.<br /> Bright, F.,and Macuray, R. The Vision Splendid. 6/- Hutchlnson.<br /> Brinton, S. The Renaissance in Italian Art. Part 2. 876 net.<br /> Simpkin.<br /> Burchell, S. H. The Duke&#039;s Servants. A Romance. 6/- Gay.<br /> Butler, D. John Wesley and George Whitefleld in Scotland. 5/-<br /> Blackwood.<br /> Cadell, the late Sir R. Sir John Cope and the Rebellion of 1745.<br /> 10/6 net. Blackwood.<br /> Card, F. W. Bush Fruits. 5/- net. Macmillan.<br /> Carnegie, Hon. D. W. Spinifex and Sand. 21/- Pearson.<br /> Carnegie, W. H. Church Troubles and Common Sense. 2/6.<br /> Murray.<br /> Chambers, R. W. Ashes of Empire. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Chapman, J. W. The Lost Crown. 2/6. Marshall Bros.<br /> Chapman, J. W. Power of a Surrendered Life. 2 6. Marshall Bros.<br /> Cherry, B. L., and Marigold, H. W. Land Transfer Acts, 1875 and<br /> 1897. 18&#039;- Sweet and M.<br /> Clarke, H. W. The Confessional In the Church of England. 2/-<br /> net. H. W. Clarke.<br /> Oole, R. S. A Treatise on Photographic Optics. 6/- Low.<br /> Co nan t, T. Upper Canada Sketches. 17/6. Putnam.<br /> Conybeare, F. C, and others. The Story of Ahikar. 15/- Clay.<br /> Corbett, Mrs. G. Little Miss Roblnson Crusoe. 3/6. Pearson.<br /> Cornill, C. H. (tr. by W. H. Carruth). History of the People of<br /> Israel. 7/6. Paul.<br /> Croker, B. M. Infatuation. A novel. 6/- Chatto.<br /> Crump, A. Talmatha, a play. 1/ - Richmond, Surrey: Hlscoke.<br /> Curtln, J. Creation Myths of Primitive America. 10&#039;6 net.<br /> Williams and N.<br /> Cust, L. The Master E. S. and the Ars Moriendi: Chapter in<br /> History of Engraving. 17/6 net. Frowde.<br /> D&#039;andllker, K. (tr by E. Salisbury). Short History of Switzerland.<br /> 7/6. Sonnenschein.<br /> DeBury, Yetta Blaze. French Literature of To-Day. 6/- Constable.<br /> Dilworth, VV. J. A New Sequel to Euclid. 2/6. Blackie.<br /> Doyle, John A. (ed ). Memoir and Correspondence of Susan Ferrier.<br /> 18/- Murray.<br /> Dryander, Ernst (tr. and ed. by W. O. E. Oesterley). A Commentary<br /> on the First Epistle of St. John. 5/- Stock.<br /> Earle, A. M. Home Life In Colonial Days. Macmillan<br /> Edwards, W. N. Beverages we Drink. 1/- Ideal Pub. Union<br /> Fairbairn, A. M. Catholicism, Roman and Anglican. 7/6. Hodder.<br /> Fison, L. A. Merry Suffolk, Master Archie, &lt;fcc. 1/- Jarrold<br /> Gardiner, F. J. History of Wisbech and Neighbourhood during<br /> 1848-98. 26/- net. Marlborough.<br /> Gerard, Dorothea. Things that Have Happened. 6/- Methuen.<br /> Gibson, Elizabeth. Evangel of Joy. 2/- net. Richards.<br /> Gibson, J. G. Divine Song in its Human Echo. 7/6. Andrews..<br /> Giddings, F. H. The Elements of Sociology. 6/- net. Macmillan.<br /> Giles, A. Across Western Waves and Home in a Royal Capital.<br /> 6/- net. Simpkin.<br /> Goadby, J. J. Best Society and other Lectures. 5/- Edwin,Vaughan.<br /> Graham, W. Last Links with Byron, Shelley, and Keats. 6, - net.<br /> Smithers.<br /> Green, S. G. Christian Creed and the Creeds of Christendom. 6,-<br /> Macmlllan.<br /> Greene, E. B. The Provincial Governor in the English Colonies of<br /> North America. 7/6. Longman.<br /> Gregorovlus, F. History of City of Rome in Middle Ages Tr. from<br /> 4th German ed. by Annie Hamilton. Vol. VI Two parts.<br /> 4/6 net each. Bell,<br /> Gndeman, A. (ed ) Latin Literature of the Empire. Vol. 1.—Prose.<br /> Harper<br /> Hacckel, Ernest. The Last Link. 2/6. Black.<br /> Hamblen, H- E. Tom Benton&#039;s Luck. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Harknesa. J., and Morley, F. Introduction to the Theory of Analy-<br /> tical Functions. 12/6 net. Macmillan.<br /> Hastie, W. Theology as Science, and its Present Position and<br /> Prospects in the Reformed Church. Maclehose.<br /> Hearn, L. Exotics and Retrospectives. 8/6. Low.<br /> Heath, E. A. Vaccination. Heath and Co<br /> Henderson, T. F. Scottish Vernacular Literature. A History. 6/-<br /> Nutt.<br /> Higginson, T. W. Tales of the Enchanted Islands of the Atlantic.<br /> 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Hill, G. BIrkbeck (ed.). Unpublished Lettors of Dean Swift. 12/-<br /> Unwin.<br /> Hintern, A. H. Practical Pictorial Photography. Part. 2. 1/-<br /> Hazell<br /> .<br /> Hitchcock, G. S. In Rebel Moods. 2/- Simpkin.<br /> Hogg, W. Guide to Selecting Plays. 1/- S. Trench.<br /> Hooper, W. E. Confessions of an Amateur Sailor. 1/- Spottiswoode.<br /> Hore, A. H. Eighteen Centuries of the Orthodox Greek Church. 15/-<br /> Horne, C. S. What We Owe to the Puritans. 1/- H. Marshall.<br /> Housman, Laurence. The Field of Clover. 6/- PauL<br /> Johnson, H. Progressive Life. 2/- Partridge.<br /> Jones, Henry Arthur. The Masqueraders. 2/6. Macmillan.<br /> Keen, W. W*. Surgical Complications and Sequels of Typhoid Fever.<br /> 17/- Rebman.<br /> Kingscote, E. Spasmodic Asthma, from a new Standpoint. I/- net.<br /> Glaisher.<br /> Kistler, C. (tr. by A. Schreiber). A System of Harmony. 6/- net.<br /> Haas.<br /> Krehhiel, H. E. Music and Manners. 6/- Constable.<br /> Lagerlof, Selma (tr. by P. B. Flack). Gosta Berliog. 6/- Gay.<br /> Lap worth, C. Intermediate Text-Book of Geology. 5/- Blackwood.<br /> Larminie, W. (ed.). West Irish Folk-Tales and Romances. 3, 6 net.<br /> Stock.<br /> Lawson, E. Guide to Dancing. 1/- Rout ledge.<br /> Lecky, W. E. H. Democracy and Liberty. Cablnet edition (contain-<br /> ing Estimate of Mr. Gladstone). 12/- Longman,<br /> Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 57. Tom-<br /> Tytler. 16/- net. * Smith and E.<br /> Le Voleur. In the Tsar&#039;s Dominions. 6/- Hutchinson.<br /> Lichfield, Dean of. The Ritual Crisis. 1/- Longman.<br /> Lodge, H. Cabot. Story of the Revolution. 32/- Constable.<br /> London, Bishop of. The Position of the Church of England. 6d<br /> net. Longman<br /> Loney, S. L. Examples in Arithmetic for Schools. 3/6.<br /> Macmillan<br /> Lowry, S. C. Lessons from the Passion of Our Lord for Modern Life<br /> 2/6. Skefflngton<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 216 (#228) ############################################<br /> <br /> 2 l6<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Lowsoi), J. M Text-book of Botany. 6/6. Clive.<br /> Lydekker, R. Wild Oxen, Sh^ep, and Goats of all Lands. 10.V-net.<br /> R. Ward.<br /> McOabe, J., and Darien, ii Can Wo Disarm? 2/6. Heinemann.<br /> Mackenzie, M. M., and others, (eds.) The Yearly Supreme Court<br /> Practice 1S99. 20/- net. Buttcrworth.<br /> Mactaggart, J. Mackinnon and the Bards. Oliphant.<br /> Mantle, J. Q. According to the Pattprn. 2/6. Mirshall Bros.<br /> Martyn, Edward. The Heather Field and Macve. 5/- Duckworth.<br /> Masbt1, H. J. L. J. Gloucester Cathedral. 1/6. Bell.<br /> Mews, J. (ed.) The Digest of English Case Law. 16 vols. £16.<br /> Sweet and M.<br /> Middlemass, Jean. In Storm and Strife. A Novel. 6 - Digby.<br /> Miller, G. W. Fettered by Fate. 6/- Dighy.<br /> Miller, H. A. Money and Bimetallism. 5 - Putnam.<br /> Miller, J. R. The Master&#039;s Blesseds. 2/6&#039; Balder.<br /> Morgan, W. A. (ed.) The &quot; House&quot; on Sport. Written by members<br /> of the Stock Exchange. 21/- Gale and P.<br /> Morton, Victor. Thoughts on Hell. 2/- Sands.<br /> Moule, H. C. G. Thv Keeper. 1/6. Simpkin.<br /> Murrell, W. Aids to Materia Medici. Part 2. 2/- Baillu-re.<br /> Nesfield, J. G. Manual of English Grammar and Oompos&#039;Hon. 2&#039;t&gt;.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Nunn, T. W. Care of Growing Ch&#039;liren. l/-net. Glaisher.<br /> O&#039;Conor, J. F. X. Sacred Scenes and My*teries. &quot;,&#039;- Longman.<br /> Orr, James. Neglected Factors in the Study of the Early Progress<br /> of Christianity. 3/6. Hodder.<br /> Ottley, R. L. The Hehrew Prophets. 1/- Rivingtons.<br /> Page, T. Nelson. Bed Rock. 6/- Heinemann.<br /> Paget. S. Essays for Students. 3/6. Bailliere,<br /> Parker. E. J. Summer Sonnets, and other Verses. 2/6 net.<br /> Richards.<br /> Payaon, E. P. 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326	https://historysoa.com/items/show/326	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 10 (March 1899)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+10+%28March+1899%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 10 (March 1899)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1899-03-01-The-Author-9-10					217–244																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1899-03-01">1899-03-01</a>							10			18990301	^Tbe Hutbor.<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. i o.] MARCH i, 1899. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Seoretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only.<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOB some years it has been the practice to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices,&amp;e., for the guidance<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to carry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rules should be attended to:<br /> (I.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> motion forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both sides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> A A 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 218 (#230) ############################################<br /> <br /> 2i8 THE AUTHOR,<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> i. INVERT member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> t,J advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If, in the<br /> opinion of the Committee and the Solicitors of the Society,<br /> the advice sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor,<br /> the member has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s<br /> solicitors. If the case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is<br /> desirable, the Committee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s<br /> opinion. All this without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> bo far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the case of fraudulent houses—the tricks of every publish,<br /> ing firm in the oountry.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of everything<br /> important to literature that you may hear or meet with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Sooiety now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6s. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> communicate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are&gt;<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously-<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable-<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any circumstances,,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, Ac.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding -<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanced 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correct: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of course, we-<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it-<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I.—Canadian Society of Authors.<br /> ASOCIE l&#039;Y of Authors has been founded<br /> in Canada. The chairman is the Hon.<br /> George William Ross, who has held office<br /> as Minister of Education, is a distinguished<br /> orator, an LL.D. of St. Andrews, and the author<br /> of &quot;The History of the School System of<br /> Ontario,&quot; and other educational works.<br /> II.—Copyright in Holland.<br /> As many authors know to their sorrow, Holland<br /> declined to accept the provisions of the Berni-<br /> Copyright Convention, as a result of which there<br /> is a chronic war between that country and<br /> Germany. A Dutch publisher, however, has just<br /> been neatly scored off by Adolf Streckfuss, the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 219 (#231) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 2ig<br /> Oerman historian, in connection with his latest<br /> book, the &quot;History of the World.&quot; No<br /> sooner had the first few parts appeared than he<br /> became aware that a piratical translation was<br /> being sold in Amsterdam. He applied to the<br /> publisher for some sort of honorarium, and<br /> received in reply a Dutch cheese, with a statement<br /> that the sender recognised no moral obligation in<br /> the matter. Next week the following advertise-<br /> ment appeared in the leading newspapers of<br /> Amsterdam: &quot;For sale, the manuscript of the<br /> * History of the World&#039; by Streckfuss, a fort-<br /> night before the publication of each part in<br /> Berlin.&quot; Scores of eligible offers came in, and<br /> the freebooter had to choose between losing his<br /> stock of the first numbers or outbidding his trade<br /> rivals. He chose the latter alternative, and the<br /> author got a handsome price for his book.—Daily<br /> Chronicle, Feb. 2. .<br /> III. —Copyright in Russia.<br /> The commission which has been engaged for<br /> some time past in revising the Russian Civil Code<br /> will, it is stated, lay very shortly before the<br /> Council of State a scheme for the protection of<br /> literary property, which has hitherto received but<br /> scant attention from the Legislature. The copy-<br /> right in any work will be vested in the author<br /> or his heirs and assigns for a period of fifty<br /> years. No limitation to the right of translating<br /> works published abroad by Russian or foreign<br /> writers is recommended, but native writers are<br /> secured the exclusive right to translate their own<br /> works for ten years from the date of publication,<br /> provided that they bring out a translation within<br /> the first three years. Very strong provisions are<br /> urged against the piracy either of Russian or<br /> foreign books, and it is recommended that the<br /> courts of justice should be empowered in assess-<br /> ing damage to reckon the extreme loss occasioned<br /> by such acts of spoliation.—Daily Chronicle,<br /> Jan. 19. -a r<br /> IV. —&quot;A Curious Question.&quot;<br /> 1.<br /> In last month&#039;s Author &quot;A Friendly Critic&quot;<br /> discussed &quot; a curious question&quot; on the right of a<br /> publisher to claim the repayment of royalty he<br /> had paid to an author &quot; on books sold,&quot; many of<br /> which books, possibly 100, having subsequently<br /> been taken back by him from a bookseller on the<br /> plea that the sale of the said book had ceased, and<br /> it had become dead stock—upon these books so<br /> returned the publisher claimed the repayment of<br /> the royalty on the ground that the books had not<br /> been sold.<br /> Let me reverse this order by sketching a picture<br /> of an equally lurid tint. I have recently acted<br /> on behalf of an author whose book in the market<br /> is of high repute and is published for him by an<br /> old London firm. Recently a cheap edition was<br /> issued, and, &quot; for the convenience of the trade,&quot;<br /> the said firm took back certain copies of the<br /> higher-priced edition, but it gave no indication in<br /> the half-yearly statement of desire to be just by<br /> returning the amount of the royalty charged and<br /> paid on these returned books as &quot;books sold.&quot;<br /> I therefore claimed the return of the said royalty,<br /> but the payment was refused on the plea that<br /> &quot;the books had been sold, and had been so<br /> accounted for at the time.&quot;<br /> Upon this reply I at once gave instructions to<br /> the publishers that I would not allow another<br /> copy to be returned on account of the author; if<br /> so taken back it would be at their risk and cost.<br /> If authors would thus instruct their publishers,<br /> the publishers would be compelled very speedily<br /> to change their tacties on questions of royalty.<br /> An Author.<br /> 11.<br /> 8th Feb. 1899.<br /> On page 201 of last month&#039;s Author I see the<br /> following statement commenting on a case I put<br /> forward in The Author (page 151) :—<br /> &quot;The curious question (and it is aptly called)<br /> amounts, then, divested of fatal generalisation,<br /> to this: If the book manages to sell again (or<br /> not, for that matter), shall the author refund the<br /> royalty on those twenty copies?&quot;<br /> Those members who care to refer to page 151<br /> will see that this is not at all the question,<br /> and never was the question, and that the com-<br /> mentator seems entirely to have misunder-<br /> stood the facts of the case. The point was not<br /> one of refunding the royalties. The author<br /> had been paid on copies sold, and as such was<br /> entitled to keep the royalties. The point of<br /> moral obligation referred to was whether<br /> the publisher had a right to sell the books<br /> which he himself had purchased back in priority<br /> to the books still remaining on which the<br /> author was entitled to a royalty. On further<br /> consideration of the matter, I am inclined to<br /> think that the publisher would have had no<br /> right to spoil the author&#039;s market for the<br /> benefit of his own pocket.<br /> Yours truly,<br /> G. Herbert Thring.<br /> V.—Cataloguing.<br /> During a series of years I have published a<br /> number of scientific—more or less—books.<br /> Possibly because I have striven to make them<br /> not &quot;too clever&quot; they have had a very fair<br /> measure of success, and I have received a modent<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 220 (#232) ############################################<br /> <br /> 220<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> return for my labours. In my early and ignorant<br /> days, before the Society of Authors came to the<br /> rescue, I was fool enough to believe nearly all<br /> that publishers told me, and arranged for several<br /> of my books on half-share terms, without any<br /> stipulations as to &quot;cost of production/&#039; &quot; adver-<br /> tising,&quot; &quot;inspection of accounts,&quot; &amp;c. The<br /> natural result was that these books were con-<br /> siderably overweighted, and, in addition to charg-<br /> ing an extra 15 per cent. for publishing, my kind<br /> friends added two guineas a year on each book<br /> for cataloguing. To use a country term, this<br /> &quot;stuck in my crop &quot; worse than the other over-<br /> charges, and recently, after many expostulations,<br /> this charge has been reduced one-half. My object<br /> in writing to The Author is to ask if a publisher<br /> can legally make a charge for cataloguing r&#039;<br /> lie undertakes to sell your books, and he cannot<br /> do this without he issues a list of his wares, which<br /> is really part of his stock-in-trade. No other<br /> tradesman makes a charge for cataloguing what<br /> he sells; why, therefore, should &quot;literary wares&quot;<br /> be taxed more than any other&#039;;&#039; Again, why do<br /> some firms charge 15 per cent. commission for<br /> publishing, whilst others of superior rank are<br /> content with 10 per cent.? Either one must be<br /> too little or the other too much.<br /> Another question I should like to ask is, Can<br /> publishers delay the issuing of a book for their<br /> own gain? I arranged with a firm to publish a<br /> book for me at a fair royalty, and they kept it on<br /> hand some months longer than they should do.<br /> On writing to them thereon, their reply was they<br /> were canvassing for special advertisements to<br /> issue with it. Perhaps they intend sending me<br /> part of the proceeds, but perhaps not.<br /> Although I am not entirely dependent 011 my<br /> pen—a good job, too, my best friends would<br /> probably say—I cannot refrain from thanking<br /> the Society of Authors for the light they have<br /> already let into &quot; Darkest (Literary) Africa &quot; ; and<br /> notwithstanding the assaults of the enemy from<br /> without, and I am afraid sometimes from within,<br /> they will take heart of grace from the good they<br /> have done, and keep pegging away till &quot;those<br /> poor devils of authors &quot; have succeeded in obtain-<br /> ing all they require, and what they intend to<br /> have, viz., justice.<br /> A Scientist—More or Less.<br /> VI.—Autobiography—Sir Arthur Sullivan.<br /> &quot;But all this time my mind was set on compo-<br /> sition. I was ready to undertake anything that<br /> came in my way. Symphonies, overtures, ballets,<br /> iinthems, hymn-tunes, songs, part songs, a con-<br /> certo for the violoncello, and eventually comic<br /> and light operas — nothing came amiss to me;<br /> and I gladly accepted what publishers offered me,<br /> so long as I could get the things published. I<br /> composed six Shakespearean songs for Messrs.<br /> Metzler and Co., and got five guineas apiece for<br /> them. &#039;Orpheus with his Lute,&#039; &#039;The Willow<br /> Song,&#039; &#039;0 Mistress Mine,&#039; were amongst them.<br /> Then I did &#039;If Doughty Deeds&#039; and &#039; A Weary<br /> Lot is Thine, Fair Maid,&#039; for Messrs. Chappell.<br /> I raised my price for these songs, and sold them<br /> outright for ten guineas each.<br /> &quot;I was getting on, but by this time I had come<br /> to the conclusion that it was a pity for the<br /> publishers to have all the profit. My next song,<br /> &#039;Will He Come?&#039; went to Messrs. Boosey, on<br /> the understanding that I was to have a royalty<br /> on every copy sold. And, oh, the difference to<br /> me! I did very well with &#039;Will He come?&#039;<br /> and never sold a song outright afterwards. After<br /> that I published &#039;Sweethearts,&#039; &#039;Once Again,&#039;<br /> &#039;Looking Back,&#039; &#039;Let Me Dream Again,&quot; and<br /> many other songs, and these all brought grist to<br /> the mill.&quot;—M.A.P., Feb. 4, 1899.<br /> VII.—A Commission Book.<br /> There was a very simple agreement made by<br /> letter only. The author was to be liable for<br /> not more than .£30; the book was to be<br /> jiublished at 6*. There was to be an edition<br /> of no more than 500 copies. The publisher was<br /> to give the author 3*. for every copy sold; he was<br /> to take 10 per cent. on this sum, and was to<br /> pocket the difference between the trade price and<br /> the 3*. In other words, then, the average trade<br /> price being 3*. 6J., he was to take 6&lt;/. on every<br /> copy first, and 10 per cent. on 34-. afterwards—in<br /> a\\i)id. He was not to spend more than .£15 in<br /> advertising. Nothing could be simpler than this<br /> agreement. The following, however, was the<br /> account rendered:<br /> He charged for 750 copies instead of 500; he<br /> charged for binding 500 at 5rf., less a small<br /> fraction; he charged .£45 for advertising instead<br /> of .£15, as agreed upon. The sales were 379. He<br /> took his 10 per cent. on this item; he also<br /> charged, without agreement, 10 per cent. on the<br /> cost of production — the amount set down for<br /> which not being audited. On remonstrance he<br /> knocked off .£23 from the advertisement bill.<br /> What the amount ought to have been, if the bill<br /> was honest, was a cost of .£60 and sales of .£53,<br /> leaving the author with a loss of .£7. What the<br /> account was as stated was a cost of ,£78, against<br /> sales of .£53, leaving a loss to author of ,£25.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 221 (#233) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> TEE PEN AND THE BOOK.<br /> I.—The &quot;Athen^um.&quot;<br /> THE following is from the Athenaeum, of<br /> Jan. 21:<br /> In his new volume, &quot; The Pen and the Book,&quot; Sir Walter<br /> Besant renews, with more violence than ever, the attack on<br /> the publishers to which he seems to devote much of his<br /> time. Formerly he used to say there were exceptions, but<br /> now he inculcates upon the literary beginner that publishers<br /> are thieves. &quot;Thievery,&quot; in fact, he prints in capital<br /> letters. No doubt the publishers, as we remarked at the<br /> time, gave Sir Walter a great advantage when they allowed<br /> the committee of their association to issue last summer a<br /> series of draft agreements that no sensible author would<br /> dream of aooepting; but the abase heaped upon them in<br /> the fifth chapter of Sir Walter&#039;s book is quite undeserved, and<br /> will create in young authors an absurd prejudice against the<br /> honourable men of the trade (and they are the vast<br /> majority), and it will be bitterly and justly resented by<br /> them.<br /> It is impossible to argue the general question with Sir<br /> Walter, for his notion of reply is to repeat in stronger<br /> language what he has already said; but it is really neces-<br /> sary to point out, now that he has denounced as thieves<br /> most, if not all, publishers, great as well as small, that he<br /> ought to give exact details of their thefts, accompanied by<br /> the names of the thieves. It is not fair to keep on openly<br /> bringing charges without making an effort openly to sub-<br /> stantiate them; and much as we believe in Sir Walter&#039;s<br /> honesty of purpose, we think that unless he will do so, open-<br /> minded people who are willing to hear both sides will cease<br /> to pay attention to his polemics.<br /> The writer says that I &quot;call publishers<br /> thieves.&quot; He qualifies this statement later on, by<br /> saying that I denounce &quot;as thieves, most, if not<br /> all, publishers.&quot;<br /> I have looked into the book for any words that<br /> might justify this charge. I can find none. So<br /> far as I can discover it is a sheer invention. I<br /> say (p. 201) that &quot;many publishers, including<br /> someof thegreat houses,have madeit their common<br /> practice to take secret percentages.&quot; &quot;Many<br /> publishers.&quot; This is literally and exactly true.<br /> The proofs are simple. They are (1) the exami-<br /> nation of accounts. (2) The extreme wrath of<br /> these gentry at the disclosure of real estimates.<br /> (3) The impudent denials of the accuracy of<br /> these real estimates. (4) The repeated charge<br /> that the estimates have been invented. (5) The<br /> fact that the Publishers&#039; Committee in their new<br /> draft agreement claim the actual right to charge<br /> what has not been spent (!) Now,I have repeatedly<br /> laid it down as an axiom, as plain as any in<br /> Euclid, that he who tells his partner that he has<br /> spent £120 when he has not spent £100, putting<br /> the overcharge secretly in his pocket, is a Thief.<br /> And everybody agrees with me.<br /> 2. The &quot; undeserved abuse&#039;&#039; spoken of in the<br /> fifth chapter of this book is the renewed exposure<br /> of the claims and pretensions of these &quot;draft<br /> agreements,&quot; together with certain warnings to<br /> the inexperienced. I have looked through the<br /> chapter carefully, and find nothing to alter.<br /> 3. The threatened &quot;resentment&quot; (of the<br /> persons concerned in defrauding their partners)<br /> may be &quot;bitter.&quot; It cannot be more bitter in<br /> the future than it has been in the past. Yet<br /> we survive.<br /> 4. When a society, daily occupied with the<br /> administration of literary property, finds it neces-<br /> sary to publish such books as &quot; The Methods of<br /> Publishing&quot; and the &quot;Cost of Production &quot;:<br /> and to expose, month by month, trick after trick,<br /> it requires some courage to state, even anony-<br /> mously, that the &quot;vast majority &quot; of publishers<br /> are &quot;honourable &quot; men. One would like to know<br /> on what experience, and on what data, this state-<br /> ment is made. It may be that the writer&#039;s expe-<br /> rience extends over a longer time and a wider<br /> area than my own. If this is not the case I<br /> prefer my own opinion, which is not that ad-<br /> vanced above.<br /> 5. He calls for &quot;details of the thefts.&quot; What<br /> details can be given except those advanced in the<br /> publications of the Society?<br /> 6. He calls for names. Just so. Does he<br /> know what the Law of Libel means? Is he<br /> aware that it is not enough to justify a statement.<br /> and that damages may be awarded, even when<br /> the libel is proved to be perfectly true?<br /> If one were a millionaire the luxury of giving<br /> names might be afforded occasionally. After all,<br /> the Society&#039;s method of publishing the exact<br /> details answers quite as well, because it instructs<br /> the persons concerned, and probably prevents a<br /> repetition. The claim for the production of names<br /> is, of course, a stale old trick, because the write r<br /> must know perfectly well the impossibility of it.<br /> II.—&quot; Literature.&quot;<br /> Thu treatment of the book by Literature is as<br /> fair and honourable as that by the Athenxum is<br /> one-sided. A long correspondence has been<br /> carried on from week to week. Writers on both<br /> sides are allowed a fair say and fair space to say<br /> it in. It is to be observed that no publisher in<br /> the correspondence has hitherto signed his name:<br /> that no serious statement has been seriously met:<br /> that, especially, the charges of secret profits are<br /> either evaded or ridiculed: that the &quot; method of<br /> the future &quot; has been shown by perfectly indepen-<br /> dent witnesses, two of whom sign their names, to<br /> be practicable, and proved to be practicable: and<br /> that the first and most violent attack was met<br /> with unqualified denials not only by myself, but<br /> by Mr. Thring. When I have on my side the<br /> great name of Herbert Spencer: when I have the<br /> experience of Professor Spiers: when I! find<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 222 (#234) ############################################<br /> <br /> 222<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> tribute after tribute to one part or auother of the<br /> book: when I cannot find one publisher who is<br /> willing to traverse any statements seriously, and<br /> with the responsibility of his name and without<br /> misrepresentation, I ought to be satisfied with<br /> the general opinion.<br /> In all these controversies there is always to be<br /> found the author who knows nothing of the<br /> questions at issue, or who cannot understand<br /> them. In this case Mr. Edward Cooper plays<br /> this distinguished part. He actually believes<br /> that to proclaim his own satisfaction with his<br /> treatment by publishers is to settle the question.<br /> He has received so much for his last novel: he<br /> therefore concludes that he has been fairly<br /> treated. I am not for one moment pretending<br /> that he has not been fairly treated, but a man<br /> who calls his publisher an upright and honour-<br /> able man without the least knowledge of what the<br /> publisher makes for himself by the transaction,<br /> has no right to speak on the question at all Let<br /> him content himself with his own satisfaction<br /> and his own confidence. They will make him<br /> happy, even if his publisher is a Barabbas.<br /> III.<br /> There was a second part of my letter to<br /> Literature which, I submit, should be submitted<br /> to all our readers, because it contains a most<br /> important corroboration of my statements:<br /> &quot;I have consulted Mr. Or. Herbert Thring,<br /> secretary and solicitor to the Society, on the above<br /> points. He appears to be in accord with me on<br /> every one. I subjoin my questions and his<br /> answers. I do this because it is a common trick<br /> to represent these facts and statements as mine<br /> only. They have been, on the contrary, pub-<br /> lished in the Society&#039;s paper by a responsible<br /> committee, by a responsible secretary, and by<br /> myself—the Editor of that paper. Also the<br /> secretary and the chairman of this committee do<br /> obtain a knowledge of the whole field, which no<br /> single publisher can arrive at.<br /> &quot;These are my questions and Mr. Thring&#039;s<br /> reply:<br /> &quot;I. &#039;Have you ever seen a profit-sharing agree-<br /> ment which contained a clause giving the author<br /> the choice of printer and binder, and the printer&#039;s<br /> estimate?&#039;<br /> &quot;Answer: I have never seen such an agreement.<br /> &quot;II. &#039;Is overcharging a notorious practice?&#039;<br /> &quot;Answer: I have seen many accounts of the cost<br /> of production, in which the amount charged was<br /> considerably higher than other estimates from<br /> well-known printers.<br /> &quot;HI. &#039;Are charges for advertising in a pub-<br /> lisher&#039;s own organs common, and could they be<br /> defended?&#039;<br /> &quot;Answer: In the past I have known them fre-<br /> quently made. I am glad to say they are not so<br /> common now. Legally, of course, a publisher can<br /> only charge the cost of type-setting and paper for<br /> advertising in his own organs.<br /> &quot;IV. &#039;Do deferred royalties generally mean<br /> greater profits to the publisher than to the<br /> author?&#039;<br /> &quot;Answer: This is certainly the case. As a<br /> general rule, the royalties are deferred until the<br /> sale has covered the cost of production, and then<br /> a royalty is offered at an exceedingly low rate.<br /> &quot;V. &#039;Are publishers&#039; fees charged on commis-<br /> sion agreements?&#039;<br /> &quot;Answer: This is a very common practice.<br /> &quot;VI. &#039;Are percentages charged on the items<br /> of account?&#039;<br /> &quot;Answer: This is also a common practice.<br /> &quot;VII. &#039;Is it the custom for the author to be<br /> consulted as to the medium for advertising ? *<br /> &quot;Answer: No; in rare exceptions the author is<br /> consulted, but I have never seen any clause in the<br /> agreement which bound the publisher to consult<br /> the author.<br /> &quot;VIII. &#039;Do publishers &quot;care not a rap&quot; for<br /> commission business?&#039;<br /> &quot;Answer: I know a great many publishers<br /> who take up work of this kind.<br /> &quot;IX. &#039;Is a charge for bad debts not un-<br /> common?&#039;<br /> &quot;Answer: It is not uncommon. I know pub-<br /> lishers who do make this charge in their<br /> accounts. &quot;(Signed) G. Herbert Thring.<br /> &quot;Jan. 16, 1899.<br /> &quot;The reader may not understand the objection<br /> to &#039;bad debts.&#039; It is this: The accounts are<br /> made up at long intervals, annually or twice a<br /> year, long after the books have been paid for.<br /> The amount actually realised is set down. The<br /> &#039;bad debts&#039; therefore, if charged separately, may<br /> be charged twice over.<br /> &quot;The &#039; Publisher&#039; speaks about possible losses.<br /> This is a red herring drawn across the scent.<br /> For the author has nothing to do with a pub-<br /> lisher&#039;s loss. The latter takes up a book at bis<br /> own risk—if there is any risk. He need not do<br /> it. The best publishers are also the most careful<br /> about admitting doubtful books. The author<br /> contributes his time: his work: his skill, art, or<br /> genius. That is his share. The possible loss is<br /> the publisher&#039;s. As a fact, there are hundreds of<br /> writers scattered over the whole field of literature<br /> whose works do not carry any risk at all.<br /> &quot;The author has to consider as the chief point<br /> in the agreement what will happen to him in case<br /> of successs, not of loss. This is a very important<br /> point, constantly confused by talk of risk, loss,<br /> one book paying for another, and similar stuff.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 223 (#235) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 223<br /> Questions about the figures and the printing,<br /> happily, can be dismissed with a very few<br /> words:<br /> &quot;The &#039; Publisher&#039; states:<br /> &quot;(1) That the size of the book is not given.<br /> &quot;Everybody must understand by the number<br /> of words to a page, by the type, and by the<br /> number of sheets, what size is spoken of.<br /> &quot;(2) That printers&#039; and binders&#039; charges vary.<br /> &quot;Quite true. I have given a great many<br /> estimates for this very reason.<br /> &quot;(3) That there is no allowance for correc-<br /> tions.<br /> &quot;On the contrary. There is a distinct and care-<br /> ful explanation of what corrections mean. This<br /> passage was submitted to a printer in order to<br /> get it stated accurately.<br /> &quot;(4) That advertising is not included.<br /> &quot;More than two pages (pp. 151 —153) are<br /> devoted to an explanation of what advertising<br /> meant, an addition to the cost.<br /> &quot;(5) He objects to the statement that &#039;cloth<br /> for binding is bought in large quantities&#039;<br /> because, he says, publishers do not buy cloth.<br /> He says that binders do. Exactly: and if a<br /> large order is given a reduction is made. What<br /> does it matter whether publishers or binders lay<br /> in large quantities so that the reduction is<br /> effected? I am sorry to take up the space by<br /> answering objections so futile.<br /> &quot;(6) The main portion of the letter is an attack<br /> upon the figures I have given.<br /> &quot;These figures, I have stated plainly and unmis-<br /> takably, are not my figures. I do not invent<br /> printers&#039; bills: they are more difficult to invent<br /> than plots for novels. The figures are estimates<br /> —actual estimates—which have been given to me.<br /> If they are wrong, it is the printer&#039;s business,<br /> not mine. But as books are every day printed<br /> on these estimates, I am justified in setting<br /> them down as working estimates. Let your<br /> readers understand clearly that the inability of<br /> this writer, or anybody else, to procure estimates<br /> so low has nothing whatever to do with my book<br /> or the actual estimates given therein.<br /> &quot;(7.) He attacks the &#039; Method of the Future.&#039;<br /> &quot;I do not think this excursus into the future<br /> —his brief vision of the future—needs much in<br /> reply. The &#039;method&#039; has been followed by<br /> some writers for a good long time, quite to their<br /> own satisfaction.<br /> &quot;I shall have great pleasure in giving you two<br /> or three of the better known, but I am not at<br /> liberty to publish them. I would remind or<br /> inform your readers that the draft agreements of<br /> the Publishers&#039; Association last July considered<br /> this form of publishing on commission, namely<br /> receiving the book bound and ready for distribu-<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> tion, as one of the methods to be provided for. It<br /> is, therefore, not the new thing which your writer<br /> would make out.&quot; W. B.<br /> PARIS NOTES.<br /> THE death of Adolphe d&#039;Ennery, at the ripe<br /> age of eighty-eight years, has robbed the<br /> French melodrama of one of its most<br /> popular and prolific dramatists. For six months<br /> previous to his death, M. d&#039;Ennery had lived in<br /> complete seclusion; but, although he belonged<br /> both in style and spirit to an earlier generation,<br /> his popularity with the masses remained intact.<br /> His more refined and aesthetic confreres of the<br /> present day were not always so indulgent;<br /> highly-cultured critics of the Theophile Gautier<br /> type severely criticised the productions of the<br /> favourite dramaturgist of the illiterate public;<br /> hriXimxxt fin-du-sibcle reviewers uselessly expended<br /> whole bushel loads of sarcasm and counsel on<br /> him. D&#039;Ennery invariably turned a deaf ear to<br /> their remonstrances, contenting himself with<br /> rapidly producing play after play, and reaping a<br /> golden harvest thereby. His talent was decidedly<br /> not of the highest order, but it was essentially<br /> marketable — the Hebrew strain in his blood<br /> showing itself forcibly in the &quot; cool-headedness&quot;<br /> of all his pecuniary transactions. He wrote for<br /> the multitude, not for the cultivated few, his aim<br /> being to acquire wealth and fame by pleasing the<br /> majority; and the measure of his success may<br /> be estimated by the fact that he has given the<br /> Parisian theatre upwards of 280 plays, and that<br /> he died possessed of a fortune estimated at from<br /> 8,000,000 to 10,000,000 francs (^320,000 to<br /> ^400,000), in addition to an important pottery<br /> collection bequeathed to the State.<br /> So numerous were his successes, that to mention<br /> even the names of the most prominent would<br /> mean the citation of over a hundred titles. And<br /> this success—to his honour be it said—was legiti-<br /> mately obtained; for, during the seventy years in<br /> which he untiringly devoted himself to providing<br /> a theatrical literature suited to the appreciation<br /> of the bulk of his audience, d&#039;Ennery resolutely<br /> refrained from pandering to the lower tastes of<br /> the multitude. Among the sixty collaborators<br /> who aided him at various periods of his career in<br /> his Herculean labours may be mentioned Balzac,<br /> Emile de Girardin, Alexandre Dumas, Anicet<br /> Bourgeois, Plou-ier, Eugene Sue, Frederic<br /> Thomas, Bourget, Clairville, Crcmieux, Cadol,<br /> Jules Verne, Henri Chabrillat, La Eounat, and<br /> Felix Duquesnel.<br /> That M. Victorien Sardou&#039;s dislike to notoriety<br /> does not prevent him from actively protecting his<br /> B B<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 224 (#236) ############################################<br /> <br /> 224<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> own interests when necessary is shown by the<br /> following incident, narrated by the Figaro,<br /> h propos of the recent revival of his &quot;La Tosca&quot;<br /> (Theatre Sarah Bernhardt). When this famous<br /> drama was first performed in 1887 its success<br /> was seriously compromised by a morning paper,<br /> the Gil Bias, having previously given a full<br /> analysis of the piece, thereby materially lessening<br /> the eff- ct of certain scenes on which its author<br /> had especially counted. M. Sardou immediately<br /> sued the paper, and gained his cause a year later,<br /> when he had almost forgotten the whole affair.<br /> In summing up its decision, the Premiere Chambre<br /> du Tribunal (presidedover by President Aubespin),<br /> affirmed that no paper had the right to divulge<br /> the narrative of a play previous to its first per-<br /> formance, since such a proceeding constituted a<br /> real damage to the author, in that it might<br /> seriously interfere with the success of his work.<br /> It is thus to M. Victorien Sardou&#039;s prompt action<br /> in 1887 that French dramatists are indebted for<br /> the legal recognition and protection of the rights<br /> they enjoy to-day.<br /> M. Jules de Marthold has dramatised M.<br /> Coppee&#039;s well-known novel &quot;Le Coupable,&quot; and<br /> its first representation is expected shortly. We<br /> are glad to be able to state that M. Coppee&#039;s<br /> health is now completely re-established, and that<br /> his long-promised &quot; Souvenirs de Jeunesse&quot; are<br /> really under way and proceeding apace, which<br /> fact undoubtedly rejoices the heart of M. Plon.<br /> For the latter gentleman, having scrupulously<br /> regulated the usual contract of brains versus cash<br /> between author and publisher, was naturally<br /> anxious to receive his wares as speedily as pos-<br /> sible. But the Fates and Muses were both against<br /> him. Last July, M. Francois Coppee went to<br /> Laugzune, a solitary village on the Breton coast,<br /> with the full intention of recording there the<br /> greater part, at least, of his youthful memories.<br /> But the combined attractions of the bright sun,<br /> warm air, and myriad voices of nature, proved<br /> too much for the poet; he could not work, and,<br /> after a brief interval devoted to dolce far niente<br /> and out-door existence, M. Plon was politely<br /> informed that the expected volume would not be<br /> ready before December. This month found the poet<br /> prostrate at Paris, suffering from a relapse of his<br /> former malady ; among minor griefs, his favourite<br /> cat had died during his absence—and again the<br /> &quot;Souvenirs &quot; were delayed. It is to be hoped no<br /> further illness, or unforeseen occurrence, will<br /> intervene a third time between their final conclu-<br /> sion and publishing.<br /> The invidious attitude—half nonchalant, half<br /> disdainful—of the French public and critics<br /> towards female talent is especially noticeable in<br /> the various reviews and critiques which followed<br /> the appearance of Mme. Jean Bertheroy&#039;s new<br /> book, &quot;La Danseuse de Pompeii.&quot;* Though a<br /> well-known critic affirms that the former refusal<br /> to take anything a woman did au serieu-x may<br /> now be ranked among the prejudices of the past,<br /> his own article bears evidence of a secret reluc-<br /> tance to praise unstintedly a woman&#039;s work<br /> underlying his conscious recognition and admira-<br /> tion of an undoubtedly good production. But, in<br /> the end, his sense of justice triumphs over<br /> his reluctance; and in summing up the &quot; Danseuse<br /> de Pompei&quot; as &quot;a feminine work written in a<br /> masterly style,&quot; he hits the right nail on the<br /> head, for what is this dual alliance save one of<br /> the recognised attributes of genius? Delicately<br /> feminine in its fine observation, poetical render-<br /> ing of minor details, and close knowledge of the<br /> subtleties of a woman&#039;s heart, it is essentially<br /> masculine in its concise, nervous style and<br /> breadth of imagination, allied with marvellous<br /> historical accuracy. In depicting the young<br /> dancer Nonia vowed from her earliest years to<br /> vice, and awakened by the passion for Hyacinthe,<br /> the young neophyte vowed to Apollo, to a con-<br /> sciousness of the sacrednes and purity of true<br /> love, Mme. Bertheroy has chostn no new theme;<br /> but her treatment of the subject is so masterly,<br /> her style so pure and classic, that, despite our-<br /> selves, our imagination and heart are captivated<br /> by the pathetic and simple romance of the little<br /> Pompeian dancer.<br /> That the times are troublous, that party<br /> polemics are increasing in virulence, and that cir-<br /> cumstances largely influence men, is probably the<br /> threefold reason of M. Alcanter de Brahm&#039;s<br /> resolution to publish shortly a book entitled<br /> &quot;L&#039;Ostensoir des Ironies.&quot; The announcement<br /> of his intention, however, would have received<br /> scant attention but for an ingenious advertisement.<br /> He has discovered (stand abashed, oh! ye shades of<br /> great grammarians) that our modern punctuation<br /> is lacking in a. most necessary adjunct, viz., the<br /> &quot;point d&#039;ironie.&quot; His book is to be adorned with<br /> this newly-invented period, which is reported to<br /> bear a vague resemblance to a tiny whip—the<br /> whip of satire, one journal terms it. Its origi-<br /> nator affirms that this period is as necessary as<br /> the interrogation mark, since many a barbed<br /> arrow misses its goal through inattention on the<br /> part of the reader. Personally, we have not found<br /> the Parisians lacking in a vivid appreciation of<br /> the mildest form of sarcasm, especially the<br /> sarcasms printed in their neighbours&#039; news-<br /> papers, and the result has not always been par-<br /> ticularly agreeable to the English residents in<br /> * Erroneously given in onr last article as &quot; La Dame ce<br /> Pompeii.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 225 (#237) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 225<br /> Paris. We have not yet been informed whether,<br /> in the event of a duel arising from a sarcasm<br /> which might have passed unnoticed if unmarked<br /> by the &quot;point d&#039;ironie,&quot; M. de Brahm considers<br /> the combatants should be armed with whips in<br /> lieu of pistols.<br /> Among the publications of the month, two<br /> books stand apart — the one by virtue of its<br /> quaintness, the other by its pithy, senten-<br /> tious wisdom. The first, &quot;La Chanson des<br /> Choses,&quot; by M. Jerome Doucet (ed. Henri<br /> May) is a volume of poems; but what<br /> poems! Surely never before has poet inclined<br /> his ear to listen so closely and appreciatively to<br /> the voices of such a vast assemblage of inanimate<br /> lifeless objects. He endows each article with a<br /> clearly defined existence and personality; the<br /> absinth which takes a malicious joy in recounting<br /> the ills it occasions; the subtly-distilled perfume<br /> which daintily vaunts its own ethereal, impalpable<br /> essence; the mandoline whose cords vibrate with<br /> anger at seeing the singer receive the homage it<br /> deems its due; the jovial pot-au-feu agreeably<br /> conscious of its own importance at social<br /> functions, the plaintive weathercock, &quot; sad perch&#039;<br /> for the black raven,&quot; lamenting its own wearing<br /> away; the ponderous pendulum moving to and<br /> fro in regular order like two brave soldiers of the<br /> line; the caustic mirror, the humble pavement,<br /> and a numerous array of similar articles, each in<br /> turn are presented to the reader, and acquaint<br /> him with their rhythmic joys and griefs. In<br /> addition to its intrinsic merits, the various artists<br /> whose society M. Doucet affects have rendered<br /> the work a true Edition de luxe in illustrating<br /> and illuminating it with original drawings,<br /> etchings, and water-colour sketches, reproduced<br /> in every imaginable fashion. Among the artistic<br /> corps therein represented, we find the names of<br /> MM. Maurice Leloir, Edouard Detaille, Puvis<br /> de Chavannes, Mme. Madeleine Lemaire, Jules<br /> Lefebre, Jean-Paul Laurens, and a host of other<br /> fin-du-siecle celebrities.<br /> The second book, above alluded to, is &quot; Nuances<br /> morales&quot; (ed. Lemerre) by M. Valyere. A delicate<br /> fineness of observation and terse originality of<br /> thought make themselves felt in the apt concise<br /> phrases in which the author has chosen to garb<br /> his ideas. We open the book at random and<br /> straightway fall on such pithy reflections as the<br /> following: &quot;Aimer, c&#039;est montrer a la douleur ou<br /> elle peut f rapper.—L&#039;homme coupe et dechire. La<br /> femme decoud, en enlevant jusqu&#039;a la trace des<br /> points.—Arriver a propos, c&#039;est une chance; s&#039;en<br /> aller a propos, c&#039;est un art.—Les gens froids ont<br /> l&#039;avantage de ne pas varier comme les autres: au<br /> moral, comme au physique, la glace conserve.—II<br /> faut etre Ires jeune pour prctendre dire des choses<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> definitives.—On n&#039;aime vraiment bien que les<br /> amis dont on est fier.&quot; We make no attempt<br /> to translate these and similar phrases well worthy<br /> of notice, having no desire to incur the censure<br /> of the irascible critic who likened the generality<br /> of translators to clumsy bunglers who drew the<br /> stopper from the wine-bin, thereby permitting the<br /> finer aroma and flavour of its contents to evapo-<br /> rate in the vain attempt to appreciate the liquor.<br /> M. Paul Meurice is now busily engaged in<br /> correcting his new volume, &quot; Choses vues,&quot; which<br /> is expected to appear in March. Among other<br /> interesting matter, it contains the staple of Victor<br /> Hugo&#039;s daily conversations with Louis-Philippe<br /> in the &quot;forties,&quot; at the epoch when the great<br /> French writer, then &quot;pair de France,&quot; assidu-<br /> ously frequented the Tuileries. It is from the<br /> ample notes left by the latter that these dialogues<br /> are compiled. By a curious anomaly, all<br /> memoirs, biographies, and autobiographies con-<br /> nected with the Royalties of the nineteenth<br /> century have a ready sale in Republican France,<br /> as—to cite two instances among many—the popu-<br /> larity of M. Maurice Leudet&#039;s &quot;GuiJlaume II.<br /> intime &quot; and (more recently) &quot; Nicolas II. intime&quot;<br /> testifies. The literature relating to the Napoleonic<br /> era is, likewise, largely patronised. The national<br /> adoration of the great French conqueror is now<br /> an established cult; and amongst the most<br /> talented of the writers who celebrate the glories<br /> of that heroic age may be mentioned M. Georges<br /> d&#039;Espartes, recently nominated chevalier de la<br /> Legion d&#039;Honneur—of whom a compatriot re-<br /> marked, &quot;Ce n&#039;est pas un homme, c&#039;est une<br /> epopee.&quot; M. d&#039;Espartes boasts, in addition, the<br /> unenviable distinction of being the smallest man<br /> in his native province of Gascony.<br /> The committee of the cite Rougemont (Doubs),<br /> presided over by the well-known Academician M.<br /> Henri Houssaye, has decided to found a new lite-<br /> rary society, entitled &quot; l&#039;Encyclopedie de la Societe<br /> des gens de lettres.&quot; All knotty questions, proble-<br /> matic phrases, words or terms requiring explana-<br /> tion, &amp;c., will be brought before the society,<br /> whose members will then mark the subjects they<br /> desire to undertake. Should more than one<br /> member elect to elucidate a given subject, the<br /> committee will decide on whom the duty shall<br /> devolve. The &quot;Encyclopedic de la Societe des<br /> gens de lettres&quot; already numbers eight hundred<br /> prospective members, each of whom has a speci-<br /> ality, being either poet, novelist, philologist,<br /> teacher, philosopher, military writer, historian,<br /> or savant; and every article written for the<br /> society will be printed under the signature of its<br /> author, who alone will be held responsible for its<br /> contents. The benefits of such an association are<br /> self-evident; it will probably be eminentlv suc-<br /> B B 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 226 (#238) ############################################<br /> <br /> 2 26<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> cessful, since it recognises and provides for a<br /> long-felt want.<br /> M. Pierre Loti&#039;s eastern trip his not vet come<br /> off. The latest news received of him is that he<br /> has returned to Rochefort, rue Saint-Pierre,<br /> where his family have dwelt for generations. He<br /> intends to embark shortly on one of the mail<br /> steamers of the Extreme-Orient line, but declares<br /> himself unable to decide his ultimate destination.<br /> He will go whither the fates and the caprice of<br /> the moment lead him—&quot; to Persia, perhaps; if<br /> not, elsewhere.&quot; At one time it was reported on<br /> good authority that M. Loti intended to land on<br /> the shores of the Indus, remain several weeks at<br /> Cabul, and from thence proceed to Teheran;<br /> and this is probably still his intention, if no<br /> adverse current or fair face intervene to lure him<br /> from his destined route. At any rate, the ques-<br /> tion will be satisfactorily solved when he gives us<br /> his promised volume of Eastern impressions.<br /> The &quot; Femmes Nouvelles &quot; and &quot; Les Troncons<br /> du Glaive&quot; of the brothers Margueritte have not<br /> yet been given to the public. Domestic cares, in-<br /> cluding the refusal of the Seine tribunal to grant<br /> the divorce demanded by M. Paul Margueritte,<br /> are accountable for this delay. The two brothers<br /> are now travelling in Italy with the children of<br /> the elder, and are reported to be busily engaged<br /> in pushing forward the works above cited.<br /> Differing entirely in outward appearance and<br /> character, the affection existing between the two<br /> Marguerittes is most touching, and truly &quot; passeth<br /> the love of women.&quot;<br /> If the quality of the Dreyfus literature were on<br /> a par with its multiplicity, it would merit more<br /> than a passing notice; but, unfortunately, such<br /> is not the case. And now party polemics and<br /> journalism are likely to be more virulent than<br /> ever, owing to the changes brought about by the<br /> new election to the Presidency of the French<br /> Republic. Dakracotte Dene.<br /> FROM THE AMERICAN PAPERS.<br /> THE proposal to issue sixpenny novels in<br /> England has evoked an interesting com-<br /> mentary from a Boston correspondent of<br /> the New York Times. Contrary to the view<br /> entertained by the firm of publishers who are<br /> about to introduce the system, this writer states<br /> that any bookseller of even moderate experience<br /> knows that the sale of the more costly edition of<br /> a book will be diminished by the appearance of a<br /> cheap edition of the same book. An excellent<br /> American house publishes cloth and paper<br /> editions almost simultaneously, charging 4*. for<br /> one and 2s. for the other. There are a few persons<br /> who dislike paper covers, but their number<br /> diminishes yearly, most buyers preferring the<br /> economical course which allows them to buy two<br /> books in paper covers for the price of one in<br /> cloth. Moreover, they want paper-covered editions<br /> of everything, from the classics down to the newest<br /> copyrighted novel. Concerning this, however, it<br /> will be obsei ved that while the American writer<br /> speaks of books published at 4s. and 2s., the<br /> proposal of Messrs. Methuen is to issue novels<br /> simultaneously in 6s. and 6d. editions; and it is<br /> obvious that so far as quality of paper, binding,<br /> and appearance go, there must be a greater<br /> difference between the two latter than between<br /> the two former. He proceeds to state that,<br /> although the number of books sold has increased<br /> immensely both in the United States and in Great<br /> Britain, the average price and the average profit<br /> were never so small as now, and both grow<br /> smaller. &quot;There are still readers who value<br /> books more than money, and pay for them<br /> wi lingly; there are still superbly honest, honour-<br /> able publishers who resist all temptations to<br /> descend to the newest devices for obtaining the<br /> thirty pieces of silver without seeming to betray<br /> and abandon all Christian teaching, but nobody<br /> encourages either the honest reader or the honest<br /> publisher. The dishonest reader calls the first a<br /> fool and the second a miser. The dishonest<br /> publisher hates the first, and does his best to<br /> ruin the second. The evil of which both are<br /> victims has its sources beyond and below litera-<br /> ture and the trade in literary products. Its<br /> name is avarice.&quot; The writer publishes the<br /> following conversations—which are not manu-<br /> factured, but &quot;are transcribed from notes made<br /> in an excellent shop &quot;—to illustrate the demand<br /> for the &quot; paper-cover&quot; in America:<br /> 1.<br /> Customer.—Have you &quot; Isabel Carnaby &quot;f<br /> Salesman. — &quot;Concerning Isabel Carnaby &quot;? Yes,<br /> Madam. Seventy-five cents.<br /> C.—Oh! I don&#039;t—want—that! Doesn&#039;t it come in<br /> paper?<br /> S.—Yes, Madam; there it is.<br /> C.—I suppose it&#039;s jnat the same as the other? (Suspi-<br /> ciously.) Is it just the same? Do you know that it is just<br /> the same?<br /> S.—Yes, Madam.<br /> C.—Then why is it cheaper? But I&#039;ll take it. I&#039;m not<br /> going to pay seventy-five cents for a book! (Exit with the<br /> air of one who teaches valuable lessons to young men.)<br /> 11.<br /> (Time, early in 1897.)<br /> Customer.—Have you &quot; Quo Vadis&quot; in paper covers?<br /> Salesman.—No, Sir.<br /> C.—Great mistake! Book ought to be within reach of<br /> everybody. What is the price of the cheap edition?<br /> S—There is no cheap edition.<br /> C.—No cheap edition? (Exit, speechless.)<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 227 (#239) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 227<br /> in.<br /> Customer (wearing the best of English clothes and worth,<br /> watch and jewellery included, at least 800 dollars as he<br /> stands. He addresses the salesman confidentially)—Er—<br /> when is Lord Roberts&#039;s book going to appear in paper? Ten<br /> dollars is too much for one book!<br /> Salesman (not confidentially, but cheerfully, being young<br /> and fancying that he is doing a favour).—There is a cheap<br /> edition now, T50 dollars; cost you 1 &#039;88 dollars.<br /> Customer.- -Can&#039;t waste money, yon know! I&#039;ll wait for<br /> the paper!<br /> (Departs to join the band waiting for paper &quot; Bismarcks,&quot;<br /> &quot;Forbidden Lands,&quot; and&quot; Ave Romas.&quot;)<br /> IV.<br /> Charitable Dame.—Is this the Prayer Book and Hymnal<br /> counter?<br /> Salesman.—Yes, Madam. (He surveys an array of about<br /> two hundred styles, and wonders what counter she thought<br /> it was.)<br /> C.—Well, you see, I have a olass of po-oo-or boys in<br /> Sunday school. (Pauses.)<br /> S.—Yes, Madam.<br /> &quot;C.—It&#039;s a ve-ry poor class!<br /> S.—Yes, Madam. Er-very-er-kind of you!<br /> C. (rapidly).—And I thought as I shall want a large<br /> quantity—there are five of the boys—you may give me a<br /> special discount on tbe paper-covered editions. It&#039;s for<br /> charity you know and Christmas and at this blessed season<br /> we all want to do something.<br /> S.—Yes, Madam. Delighted, if we could, Madam, but<br /> we don&#039;t carry paper-covered Prayer Books and Hymnals,<br /> Madam. Might try and &#039;s. They have &#039;em<br /> —if any one does! (Customer goes.) Charity!<br /> The American newspaper publishers have pre-<br /> sented to the American members of the Joint<br /> High Commission and to Congress a statement<br /> asking that a policy be adopted which shall<br /> protect American forests by securing a revocation<br /> .of the present duty on print paper and pulp from<br /> Canada. This memorial, which is presented<br /> officially through the American Newspaper Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association, discloses a somewhat striking<br /> condition of the paper trade which will be inte-<br /> resting to England, as the paper-makers of<br /> England have lately passed through a period<br /> of critical competition against cheap paper from<br /> America. The memorialists state that the honest<br /> intentions which originally induced the estab-<br /> lishment of the tariff duty on paper and pulp<br /> have been perverted to further the purposes of a<br /> recently formed corporation, the International<br /> Paper Company, and that every newspaper<br /> publication in the country east of the Rocky<br /> Mountains has been placed at the mercy of that<br /> corporation. The statement, which was pre-<br /> sented on Jan. 30, continues :—<br /> Within the last week we are advised that the Inter-<br /> national Paper Company has acquired fourteen additional<br /> mills, representing the plants of three large concerns, and<br /> that it is negotiating for three other properties, which<br /> represent all the output from the independent mills in the<br /> territory east of Michigan.<br /> In view of the fact that the International Paper Company<br /> is. selling its surplus paper in England, Australia, and<br /> Japan, in successful competition with Canadian, German,<br /> and Swedish manufacturers, and in view of the important<br /> point that the International Paper Company is protected<br /> by reason of its proximity to its customers to the extent of<br /> an average of 1 °6o dollars per ton, and by reason of its<br /> ability to obtain cheaper and better supplies of coal and<br /> chemicals, we fail to see the occasion for giving sanction<br /> to its abuse of governmental protection.<br /> The International Paper Company is a combination of<br /> twenty-four mills (sinoe expanded to thirty) which has been<br /> capitalised at 55,ooo,ooo dollars. The entire product of<br /> this large combination could be duplicated with modern<br /> and better machinery at less cost per pound upon a capi-<br /> talisation of 15,ooo,ooo dollars. In gathering together its<br /> assortment of mills the paper company acquired every<br /> available spruce tract where cheap timber could be had<br /> and every large water power, with one exoeption, where<br /> substantial competition might otherwise be established.<br /> This object was easily attained, because our spruce supply<br /> is being exhausted at the rate of 17,000 square miles per<br /> annum.<br /> The memorial then points out that no suc-<br /> cessful competition with the International Paper<br /> Company is possible in the United States under<br /> existing circumstances, the trust having acquired<br /> all the possible facilities of paper production.<br /> &quot;A tax on newspapers,&quot; they remark in con-<br /> clusion, &quot; operates indirectly, as did the stamp<br /> tax of Europe, to suppress newspapers. It is a<br /> tax of 2,000,000 dollars per annum on in-<br /> telligence, a tax on popular education and on<br /> political knowledge.&quot;<br /> The whole episode is another illustration of<br /> the power and extent of the trust system in the<br /> United States.<br /> A good deal of attention has lately been given<br /> to the work of a new American humourist,<br /> entitled &quot;Mr. Dooley in Peace and War.&quot; In<br /> this book Martin Dooley, saloon-keeper, Chicago,<br /> talks in a quaint dialect and most amusing<br /> fashion of such subjects as the recent war, the<br /> police, labouring men, and ward polities. The<br /> author of the work is Mr. F. P. Dunne, a Chicago<br /> journalist.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> THE Joke Market in America appears to be in<br /> a condition of great prosperity. According<br /> to the Writer of Boston, jokes are in<br /> large demand. Those who supply jokes profes-<br /> sionally are increasing in numbers and in wealth.<br /> There are between 150 and 200 writers of good<br /> jokes in the States. As regards the character of<br /> the demand, it is interesting to read that &quot; two-<br /> line jokes sell best: the short, crisp dialogue is<br /> in fashion: &#039;printed&#039; paragraphs can always<br /> command a price: puns are not wanted.&quot; A<br /> regular method is pursued by the Worshipful<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 228 (#240) ############################################<br /> <br /> 228<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Company of Joke-makers. It is described as<br /> follows:<br /> Professional joke-writers bave a regular system for offer-<br /> ing their jokes to editors. A good way is to send out the<br /> jokes in packets of ten or a dozen at a time, typewritten on<br /> slips—perhaps three inches wide and eight inches long—<br /> which are bound together by brass paper fasteners at the<br /> left-hand side, and perforated about an inch from the left-<br /> hand margin, so that any joke may be easily torn out. Sheets<br /> of ordinary typewriter paper should be kept on hand,<br /> perforated, ready for use. The jokes should be type-<br /> written on these sheets, which should afterwards be cut<br /> into slips and made into a little coupon book by using<br /> brass fasteners. Only one joke should be written on any<br /> slip, and the writer should put his name and address on<br /> each slip, preferably with a small rubber stamp. Two<br /> brass binders should be used, one at the top and one at<br /> the bottom.<br /> When jokes are offered in this way, the editor can<br /> easily tear out what he wants and send back the rest. The<br /> jokes returned may be made up into a new book and sent to<br /> another editor, and so on, until all are sold or proved un-<br /> saleable. Care must be taken not to offer the same joke<br /> twioe to any editor.<br /> A great many letters have been received charging<br /> editors in general terms with neglecting to return<br /> MSS. or to answer letters. I have already more<br /> than once stated the case briefly for editors. I<br /> do not believe that this special charge can be fairly<br /> made against the general body. I should like to<br /> impress upon those who complain, that editors,<br /> particularly of the more popular magazines, are<br /> literally overwhelmed with MSS.: that it is<br /> difficult to cope with the great mass of MSS.<br /> that are sent in; that delays, therefore, must be<br /> expected. It seems to me that general experience<br /> points to the fact that most editors, especially<br /> of respectable magazines, are courteous in their<br /> replies and as prompt as can be expected in their<br /> judgments. I would call attention to the tribute<br /> of recognition paid in these columns to certain<br /> papers who pay on acceptance. 1 think that if<br /> proprietors or editors of magazines understood<br /> the enormous boon they would confer on accepted<br /> contributors by forwarding a cheque at once, the<br /> practice would become widely extended. As it is,<br /> when payment is only made on publication the<br /> editor is tempted unconsciously to accept more<br /> than he is able to use, while the contributor<br /> waits, hoping against hope, till he is heartsick at<br /> the delay.<br /> It is announced in another column that a<br /> Canadian Society of Authors has been founded.<br /> This should be good news if the Society take, as<br /> may be expected of them, a right view of the<br /> situation and its requirements. By far the most<br /> important point to keep before our eyes is the<br /> maintenance of an International Copyright,<br /> especially, and above all, between the nations of<br /> the Anglo-Saxon race. There are now six nations<br /> of the race. It is imperative in the interests, pre-<br /> sent and future, of these nations that they<br /> should have their current literature, as they have<br /> their past literature, in common. A return to the<br /> villainous old system of protection and piracy is<br /> certain to work infinite mischief to all these<br /> nations. We want a free and open publication<br /> of books and papers written by natives of all<br /> these countries: we want freedom of production<br /> everywhere: it is in the highest interests of<br /> literature that this freedom should exist: it is<br /> also in their commercial interests. If, for instance,<br /> Canada were to repudiate her share in Inter-<br /> national Copyright, it would undoubtedly lead to<br /> the ruin of her own authors, who are small in<br /> numbers, however good in quality. Piracy, when<br /> it was legally possible, ruined American authors.<br /> Piracy would ruin Canadians. We trust that<br /> this new Society will be a great and active<br /> influence in the maintenance of the true interests<br /> of literature.<br /> &quot;We are informed that the Publishers&#039; Association<br /> invited the Society of Authors to confer with it on the draft<br /> agreements it drew up last summer; but the Society<br /> declined the invitation. We do not at all like the agree-<br /> ments, but the Society should not have declined to discuss<br /> them in a friendly spirit. Perhaps it would have converted<br /> the Association to our view.&quot;<br /> This paragraph appeared in the Athenseum of<br /> Jan. 28, and the statement was repeated in the<br /> number for Feb. 18. I referred the matter to<br /> Mr. Or. H. Thring, and have received the follow-<br /> ing reply:<br /> &quot;It has been stated in the Athenseiim on two<br /> occasions—on the latter in its issue of Feb. 18—•<br /> that the Society of Authors refused to confer with<br /> the Publishers&#039; Association regarding the agree-<br /> ments published by that body. It is impossible<br /> to let such a statement go before the public with-<br /> out a direct denial. When the Society heard that<br /> the publishers were about to advance these agree-<br /> ments, the secretary wrote asking if they would<br /> kindly forward them to the Society&#039;s offices for<br /> criticism in The Author. The agreements were<br /> forwarded in due course, as no doubt the Associa-<br /> tion knew that they must come to the office in a<br /> very short time. No overture was made by the<br /> publishers either before or during the settlement<br /> of the agreements or afterwards, when they were<br /> sent to the Authors&#039; Society, asking the Society<br /> to confer with the Publishers&#039; Association on the<br /> subject. It wasonly after my criticisms and your own<br /> had appeared that one of the members of the<br /> Association in an unofficial manner regretted that<br /> such overtures had not been taken, but stated<br /> that &quot; he though it was now too late.&quot; Whether<br /> or not the Society would have accepted such<br /> overtures is an entirely different matter, the settle-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 229 (#241) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 229<br /> meat of which must have rested with the com-<br /> mittee; but one point is quite clear, namely, that<br /> the statement made in the Athenaeum, from<br /> whatever source obtained, is without foundation.&quot;<br /> Observe, that this attack upon the Society<br /> follows close upon the attack on my book, in<br /> which there is nothing that has not been already<br /> advanced or sanctioned by the Society. One<br /> naturally asks whether a paper, called by some the<br /> &quot;leading&quot; literary journal, should, in common<br /> decency, take a side against those who work in<br /> the interests of literature. One asks whether<br /> literature really means advertisements. And one<br /> asks, besides, whether it is the author or the pub-<br /> lisher who creates the literature which is adver-<br /> tised.<br /> I have long been of opinion, and am now much<br /> more decidedly of opinion, that authors must<br /> claim and demand a voice as to advertisements.<br /> In a profit-sharing agreement they should have a<br /> voice both as to the amount to be spent and the<br /> organs in which the advertisements should appear.<br /> In a royalty agreement or in a sale outright they<br /> should have a veto only. In the same way they<br /> should have a veto in the sending out of press<br /> copies. The veto and the voice could be rele-<br /> gated to the Society, where a list of papers could<br /> be kept in which a book should be advertised,<br /> and of papers to which it should be sent for<br /> review. It is needless to point out that this<br /> simple assumption of power would at one step<br /> enormously raise and strengthen the position of<br /> the author. They would choose between literary<br /> papers for advertisement and for review. And<br /> that step would certainly make literary journals<br /> more careful about attacking the interests of<br /> literature and more guarded in depreciating and<br /> misrepresenting societies or writers who maintain<br /> and defend their interests. I shall begin at once<br /> to ventilate this question, and I invite members<br /> of the Society, and authors generally, to consider<br /> this question and to favour us with their views.<br /> &quot;The Pen and the Rook&quot; was not sent out<br /> for review. My intention was that members of<br /> the Society should have the first opportunity of<br /> reading it, and that, before sending it to the<br /> press, I should have the benefit of their private<br /> opinions and criticisms. Now, as the Athenaeum<br /> has noticed it without having a copy sent, the<br /> question arises whether it is necessary to send<br /> review copies of any book to a paper which<br /> evidently does not want them. Other papers make<br /> a condition of having a book sent to them. There-<br /> fore if we want tht-ir reviews we must send copies<br /> of the book. But the Athenaeum kindly notices<br /> the book without having a copy at all. Therefore<br /> —I call attention especially to this point—it seems<br /> mere waste to present a copy of any book to this<br /> paper. If 6000 books are published every year<br /> at an average trade price of 4*. each, that means<br /> ;£i200 a year thrown away and wasted. This is<br /> a large sum of money, which might j ust as well<br /> have been saved and the books themselves sold<br /> to the public. Walter Besant.<br /> FEUILLETON.<br /> A SECOND-CLASS NOVEL.<br /> ENERAL GRAYLE was a hard, resolute,<br /> I nr sensible man, and he was a disciplinarian<br /> by inclination and training. He had a<br /> family of four sons and three daughters; and<br /> William Grayle, who was the youngest son, and<br /> the cleverest lad, was articled to a solicitor when<br /> he was seventeen. William detested the solicitor<br /> and the office and the Law, but none of the young<br /> Grayles thought seriously of gainsaying the<br /> General, so William cast about in his mind for a<br /> means of proving to his father that he could<br /> make money without the law&#039;s aid, and to this<br /> end&quot; Dennis O&#039;Hara &quot;—who was William Grayle<br /> now out of his teens and commencing his<br /> twenties—wrote a novel. He bestowed a great<br /> deal of pains upon it, but when it had been<br /> rejected by four leading firms of publishers he<br /> was very much discouraged, and put the manu-<br /> script aside. By this time he was out of his<br /> articles. Then General Grayle caught a heavy<br /> cold, which developed into bronchitis, and, as he<br /> angrily refused to &quot;coddle,&quot; he died after a<br /> week&#039;s illness, and four months later his sons<br /> received .£6000 each from the executors appointed<br /> by his will.<br /> William asked himself anxiously what he was<br /> to do with the money. It was his ambition to<br /> live in the country and hunt; but there was no<br /> possibility of doing so on the interest which<br /> .£6000 would safely bring in, and to spend the<br /> capital would be madness. He could not con-<br /> quer his aversion to the Law as a profession, so<br /> there was nothing for it but to put his capital and<br /> his energies into some business which might<br /> bring in big profits rapidly. And then an idea<br /> occurred to William Grayle. Why should he<br /> not enter a publishing firm, and learn what sort<br /> of books really do sell, and why a mysterious,<br /> insuperable obstacle seemed to stand between<br /> hard-working Dennis O&#039;Hara and publication,<br /> which was Dennis&#039;s only means of advancement?<br /> So Mr. William Grayle attended smoking con-<br /> certs assiduously and was introduced in due<br /> course to half-a-dozen journalists and a couple<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 230 (#242) ############################################<br /> <br /> 230<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> of novelists, and he asked questions in a quiet<br /> way when he saw his opportunity. As the result<br /> he confided his purpose to a literary agent, but<br /> requested him not to reveal the identity of<br /> Dennis O&#039;Hara and William Grayle. Four<br /> months later William became the junior partner<br /> of Mr. Albert Guddle, who had recently severed<br /> his connection with the well-known firm of<br /> Gunning, Guddle, and Hooker, and had estab-<br /> lished an independent publishing business.<br /> Grayle learned a great deal—a very great deal<br /> —in the course of the next three months, and<br /> then Dennis O&#039;Hara sat down in his club one<br /> night and wrote a short letter to Messrs. Guddle<br /> and Grayle, to whom he despatched his manu-<br /> script novel by parcel post the same evening. On<br /> the following morning when Mr. William Grayle<br /> entered the senior partner&#039;s room to talk over<br /> various matters of business he found Mr. Guddle<br /> listlessly turning over the pages of O&#039;Hara&#039;s<br /> manuscript.<br /> &quot;I say, Grayle,&quot; Mr. Guddle began in a dis-<br /> contented voice, &quot; Belfer&#039;s ill, or says he is&quot; (Mr.<br /> Belfer &quot; read&quot; for the firm of Guddle and Grayle)<br /> &quot;and here are half-a-score of manuscripts. It&#039;s<br /> a waste of time to keep them hanging about.<br /> Seven or eight of &#039;em have been all round the<br /> trade already, as I can see by the edges. You<br /> might just glance at the first few pages and the<br /> last chapter, Grayle, if you can find time, and<br /> then keep &#039;em a week or ten days and send &#039;em<br /> back with a form unless you see something that<br /> strikes you as very extraordinary. But here are<br /> a couple that may be worth something. Here&#039;s a<br /> Christmassy kind of yarn by Miss Bookham.<br /> Rather short and trucky, and it&#039;s been serialised,<br /> and no doubt it was built for a girls&#039; serial, but<br /> it might do for one of our Christmas books.<br /> Good aunts, you know, give her stories to their<br /> nieces. And she&#039;s not an agency woman, so I<br /> daresay we can get her cheap. And then there&#039;s<br /> this thing by a man called O&#039;Hara—never heard<br /> of him. He writes a fist rather like your own,&quot;<br /> Mr. Guddle continued, pointing to the manuscript,<br /> &quot;so perhaps you can read it; for I can&#039;t get on<br /> very well with it. I wish these unknown authors<br /> would get their stuff typewritten. Anyhow, the<br /> manuscript is clean and looks pretty new, and it<br /> would be a pity to let a good thing slip.&quot;<br /> &quot;I&#039;ll read it with pleasure,&quot; said William<br /> Grayle.<br /> Ten days later he presented to Mr. Guddle a<br /> report on O&#039;Hara&#039;s novel. It was a favourable<br /> report on the whole, but Grayle believed that it<br /> was just; for he was a proud young man and<br /> •onscientious in his way, and he would have pre-<br /> ferred to remain unheard all his life rather than<br /> obtain a hearing by unduly vaunting his work.<br /> With the report he handed the manuscript to Mr.<br /> Guddle. The senior partner read the report<br /> attentively.<br /> &quot;H&#039;m, not bad,&quot; he remarked, and then he<br /> raised the manuscript in one hand and judged its<br /> weight. &quot;It&#039;s rather a slab,&quot; he said. And<br /> then he began to speak of other matters, and did<br /> not revert to the subject of O&#039;Hara&#039;s novel at<br /> that season. But a month later, when Mr. Belfer<br /> had been at work again for some little time, Mr.<br /> Guddle mentioned the matter once more.<br /> &quot;Belfer&#039;s had a look at O&#039;Hara&#039;s novel,&quot; said<br /> the senior partner to Mr. Grayle, &quot; and his report<br /> is more favourable than yours. He likes the stuff.<br /> You mustn&#039;t think, you know, Grayle, that I<br /> don&#039;t rely on your judgment, but you aren&#039;t in<br /> the writing line yourself, and you haven&#039;t had<br /> anything like Belfer&#039;s experience. I&#039;ve read a<br /> good deal of the yarn myself. It&#039;s g- .! solid<br /> work, though I&#039;m not inclined to think it<br /> will set the Thames on fire. However, it&#039;s safe,<br /> and I&#039;m disposed to take it as a second-class<br /> novel.&quot;<br /> &quot;What&#039;s that?&quot; asked Mr. William Grayle,<br /> with genuine interest.<br /> &quot;Well, you see,&quot; replied Mr. Guddle, &quot;I do<br /> about twenty of &#039;em in the year, and they go to<br /> pay salaries, and postage, and so on. There are<br /> the books you push and boom if you can. Those<br /> are the first-class novels. There&#039;s and there&#039;s<br /> ; as you know, we publish for both. Some-<br /> times there&#039;s a lot of money in it, as you&#039;ve seen;<br /> but they&#039;re both big pots and both agency men,<br /> and of course the agents know pretty well what&#039;s<br /> in a book to a fraction, and they see that the<br /> author gets a jolly big suck at the orange. That&#039;s<br /> their interest. I don&#039;t blame the agents, as<br /> men of business; naturally they want a big turn-<br /> over to take their commission on and a paying<br /> clientele, and they&#039;re quite right to get both if<br /> they can. But agency is death on the grand old<br /> profits that there used to be for us, Grayle, and<br /> it&#039;s a fact that out of three books I published for<br /> , I lost over one. A thumping advance,<br /> you know, on account of a 25 per cent. royalty<br /> rising to 275 per cent., and only the English<br /> volume rights. Well, the second of tbe books<br /> was overweighted, and I lost—not much, but<br /> still I lost. So it&#039;s a speculation, and publishing<br /> for the big men means hard work and anxious<br /> work sometimes; and you&#039;ve got to make the<br /> small fry help to pay staff expenses and bring in<br /> sums that are more or less trifling but certain—<br /> no risk, no worry, and no hard work. Now,<br /> O&#039;Hara is just that man. And he&#039;s not an<br /> agency man, so if we offer him a deferred royalty<br /> after, say, 500 copies, the chances are he&#039;ll<br /> take it.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 231 (#243) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 231<br /> &quot;I don&#039;t quite understand,&quot; said Grayle.<br /> &quot;Surely if a book&#039;s go,,d enough to publish it&#039;s<br /> worth pushing.&quot;<br /> &quot;Oh, certainly, to the extent of 75001&#039; 1000<br /> copies,&quot; replied Mr. Guddle, &quot;but not beyond,<br /> unless it&#039;s a safe sale from the very first. And,<br /> taking them in the lump, it would mean a loss to<br /> push these minor works beyond that. Every now<br /> and then, in the lump, you get a book that has a<br /> much bigger sale in it, if it were pushed; but<br /> ordinarily, if you were ti put .£20 or .£30 extra<br /> into advertising a minor work and a lot of time<br /> and energy into shoving it along—well, you<br /> wouldn&#039;t do what I call really satisfactory busi-<br /> with two out of three. So the best thing is to<br /> clump &#039;em in altogether, regard &#039;em as safeties,<br /> and deal with &#039;em all in the same way. The<br /> quality of this yarn of O&#039;Hara&#039;s will get it an easy<br /> sale of 750 copies in England. I never stint my<br /> second-class books unduly, and I&#039;ll spend .£10 in<br /> advertising—I&#039;ll spend that in cash. I&#039;ll have<br /> 1000 copies printed, and I&#039;ll bind 250 at once<br /> and the rest as needed. I may sell a few to the<br /> colonies and a small edition to America. But no<br /> expense, mind me, after the first 1000; no taking<br /> moulds—it&#039;s wise but strict economy that does<br /> it with second-class novels, Grayle. Liberate the<br /> type and go on to the next. The book will cost<br /> me from .£80 to .£85 all told, and it will bring in<br /> .£120 or £125; I can make sure of that, Now,<br /> if I had to pay the author a royalty of a shilling<br /> a copy on the published price of the six shilling<br /> edition, and to account to him for 750 copies, it<br /> would cost me £37 10s. to settle up with the<br /> author, and where should I be unless I pushed<br /> the book? And then it wouldn&#039;t be a safe<br /> second-class novel. But if I pay him 10 per cent.<br /> on the published price—and mind you, Grayle,<br /> that&#039;s generous; it&#039;s the published price, not the<br /> price to the trade; and he must be told it&#039;s<br /> generous, for we might like to see his next—well,<br /> if I pay him 10 per cent. after 500 copies, and<br /> pay him on 250 or thereabouts, he&#039;ll get about<br /> .£7 j0s., and I shall do very well indeed. And<br /> it&#039;ll be better for him,&quot; added Mr. Guddle with a<br /> .chuckle and a wink; &quot;won&#039;t lead him into extra-<br /> vagance, or make him think he can live by author-<br /> ship, and if he comes here with another book,<br /> he&#039;ll come in a proper frame of mind. Why,<br /> some smallish firms live entirely by publishing<br /> second-class books in this way.&quot;<br /> &quot;But isn&#039;t it just a tiny bit hard on the<br /> author?&quot; asked William Grayle dryly, &quot;to be<br /> oondemned to a kind olfiasco beforehand?&quot;<br /> &quot;My dear Grayle,&quot; said Mr. Guddle, &quot; I set up<br /> in business as a commercial man, not as a philan-<br /> thropist or art-patron. I carry on my trade on<br /> the usual business principles; I make as much<br /> money as I can, where I can, and how I can. I<br /> give an author as little for a book as he&#039;ll take.<br /> Hang it all, if a man wanted to sell you houses<br /> or horses or dogs, you&#039;d get &#039;em as cheap as you<br /> could, wouldn&#039;t you Y It&#039;s the vendor&#039;s look-out;<br /> if he&#039;s got any sense he knows how business men<br /> deal. And it&#039;s a competitive world, Grayle, and<br /> either you can make a fortune in this business as<br /> a commercial man, or leave it alone and drop out<br /> and see others do it. Well, we&#039;re giving a lot of<br /> time to a second-class novel. Will you write to<br /> this man O&#039;Hara and offer him 10 per cent. on<br /> the published price after 500 copies have been<br /> sold?&quot;<br /> &quot;Oh yes, of course I&#039;ll make the offer,&quot;<br /> answered William Grayle.<br /> &quot;Oh—and look here, Grayle,&quot; Mr. Guddle<br /> resumed, &quot;Belfer thinks there may really be<br /> something big in the novel, so we&#039;ll just snap<br /> up the copyright under a clause of the agree-<br /> ment. Every now and then you get hold of a<br /> book that booms itself. So instead of making<br /> it a licence to us to publish and reserving the<br /> copyright to the author, we&#039;ll make the cession<br /> of the copyright to us the consideration for<br /> which we pay the 10 percent. Twig? O&#039;Hara<br /> won&#039;t understand the wording. Perhaps it&#039;s a<br /> woman; let&#039;s hope so. And if he or she con-<br /> sents to that I&#039;ll change my mind and we&#039;ll<br /> speculate to the extent of having moulds taken.<br /> The book may prove a property, and it&#039;s as well<br /> to look all round the deal. But I&#039;ll dictate the<br /> form of agreement. And now let&#039;s go on to<br /> something bigger.&quot;<br /> When Mr. William Grayle had left the senior<br /> partner&#039;s room and closed the door behind him, .<br /> he stood still for a moment, then he shook his<br /> head and sighed sadly.<br /> Two days later Mr. Dennis O&#039;Hara declined<br /> with thanks the offer of Messrs. Guddle and<br /> Grayle, and the manuscript was returned to the<br /> author.<br /> &quot;There are always plenty of second-class novels<br /> about,&quot;&#039; said Mr. Guddle. &quot;We&#039;ll wait for the<br /> next. I expect O&#039;Hara has been talking to some<br /> agent.&quot;<br /> &quot;Perhaps he has,&quot; said William Grayle.<br /> Molecule.<br /> THE LITERARY AGENT.<br /> OWING to the increase in the value of<br /> literary property, and the universal dis-<br /> trust of publishers as a class, a second<br /> middleman, in addition to the publisher, has<br /> sprung up of late years, namely, the literary<br /> agent. And as the literary agent is supposed to<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 232 (#244) ############################################<br /> <br /> 232<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> be doing well, there threatens to be a run upon<br /> the profession. With the influx of new men will<br /> follow certain dangers against which it is well to<br /> warn our readers. That the literary agent fills a<br /> useful place, and in many cases is absolutely<br /> essential, cannot be denied by anybody who has<br /> property to be administered.<br /> In the same way as people who have large<br /> estates are forced to employ agents to manage<br /> them properly, agents who understand all the<br /> business connected with such property, so the<br /> author with a property, large or small, has also<br /> the need of his agent. Many and necessary are the<br /> warnings which have been given in The Author<br /> as to the dealings of authors with publishers.<br /> It is necessary, now that the authors&#039; agent is<br /> rapidly multiplying, that some precautions should<br /> be observed with regard to the dealings of authors<br /> with the managers of their property.<br /> No author, to begin with, should employ an<br /> agent without having thoroughly reliable informa-<br /> tion as to his honesty and as to his capacity<br /> in placing authors&#039; MSS. before editors and<br /> publishers. Such information can only be<br /> obtained either from a friend who has had<br /> jiersonal experience, or from the Society of<br /> Authors. If an author then decides to employ<br /> an agent, he should be as careful in entering into<br /> an agreement with him as he would be in entering<br /> into an agreement with a publisher. In fact, as<br /> the relation between an author and his agent is<br /> exceedingly confidential, an author should be even<br /> more careful as to his agreement. It should be<br /> further pointed out that, although an agent may<br /> have had considerable legal experience in the<br /> matter of drafting publishers&#039; contracts, yet an<br /> agent is not, as a rule, a lawyer, and that, there-<br /> fore, it is not advisable for an author to accept an<br /> arrangement put before him by an agent without<br /> some further advice as to the desirability of the<br /> terms contained in the contract.<br /> It has been stated that certain agents take<br /> money from publishers in return for placing books<br /> with them. No proof of this allegation has yet<br /> been discovered, and one hopes that the thing is<br /> the invention of an enemy. It is needless to<br /> say that such a practice would be the most<br /> flagrant breach of trust. It would be exactly<br /> as if a solicitor was to take money from his<br /> client&#039;s adversary as well as his client.<br /> It is possible, again, that a case such as the fol-<br /> lowing might occur: An agent is exceedingly busy<br /> with the works of many authors. It is important<br /> that he should get some of them settled and off<br /> his hands at the earliest possible opportunity. He<br /> therefore in a moment of carelessness advises an<br /> author to accept such terms as would not be on<br /> the whole satisfactory in their result to the<br /> author. This is an exceptional case, and is one<br /> which is not likely to occur frequently; but the<br /> point still remains that the author cannot be too<br /> careful about what agreement he enters into,<br /> whether such agreement is put before him by the<br /> publisher, or by the publisher through his own<br /> agent. The mere question of the financial terms<br /> of an agreement is by no means the only one which<br /> should be looked into. In some cases the control<br /> of the property is even of more importance to the<br /> author than the financial question. The warning<br /> must therefore be repeated that an author cannot<br /> be too circumspect as to the agent he deals with,<br /> and as to the contract he has with that agent.<br /> The following letter is published because it illus-<br /> trates the necessity of an agreement, if only to<br /> escape misunderstandings:<br /> &quot;Your remarks concerning the possibility of<br /> disagreement between author and agent suggest<br /> to me the propriety of offering myself to your<br /> ridicule or your sympathy by a brief relation of<br /> my own conduct.<br /> &quot;An agent is no more to be trusted than a<br /> publisher, and to suppose that any agency —<br /> necessarily having its own axe to grind—can take<br /> the place of the Authors&#039; Society is manifestly<br /> absurd.<br /> &quot;My own case, briefly stated, is as follows: I<br /> had an agent, and I trusted him implicitly. I<br /> say &#039;he&#039; as a matter of convenience, but there<br /> were several of him, and some of him were clever<br /> and kind, but one of him was something unbusi-<br /> nesslike. In my first interview I asked what<br /> were my agent&#039;s terms. The answer was &#039; 10 per<br /> cent. on all sales effected by us.&#039; This seemed all<br /> right, and I thought an angel and an agent were<br /> the same, so I did not consult the Authors&#039;<br /> Society, as I should have done, and consequently<br /> no written agreement was signed by my agent and<br /> me.<br /> &quot;My agent sold a few things advantageously,<br /> but he muddled my affairs in one or two ways.<br /> Thus, a religious story was ordered of me by an<br /> American journal for young people, and at the<br /> same time I was asked to write a story for a<br /> lively London journal. My agent sent my pious<br /> tale to the lively journal and my society story<br /> to the Young People&#039;s Magazine. Both stories<br /> were of course rejected, and by the time the<br /> mistake was rectified it was too late. Since then<br /> I have had no orders from either paper.<br /> &quot;At the end of the year I found that I had<br /> lost considerably by the agency, so I decided to<br /> sever the connection. My agent agreed to this.<br /> Then he sent in his account. I found to my<br /> dismay that he had not only charged the i 0 per<br /> cent. as well as out-of-pocket expenses, but had<br /> made a charge — and a rather high one — for<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 233 (#245) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOli.<br /> 233<br /> unsuccessful efforts to place other stories, a thing<br /> never mentioned between us, and in itself a con-<br /> tradiction of our agreement as to payment by<br /> results. I protested; but he was able to enforce<br /> his charges because he had in hand certain moneys<br /> of mine.<br /> &quot;Also I found that I had pledged myself to<br /> pay a percentage, not on a year&#039;s profits, such as<br /> is charged by house agents and the like, nor on the<br /> profits of any number of years, but on all receipts<br /> accruing through time and eternity from MSS.<br /> placed by my agent. So that, however good or<br /> however bad may be the sale of those books, my<br /> agents have for ever a charge on my profits of 10<br /> per cent.<br /> &quot;I hope all this is clear. It will be seen from<br /> my weak trust in a verbal agreement that I am<br /> no business man. But there must be other authors<br /> not more discerning, more crafty, than I. To<br /> t,uch I would say: (1) Engage no agent without<br /> the Society&#039;s advice; (2) engage no agent without<br /> a written agreement; (3) sign no agreement<br /> without consulting the Society; (4) remember<br /> that a literary agent is just like a publisher in<br /> that he makes his living out of authors; therefore<br /> be sure that you know exactly what he means to<br /> take, and whether it is also what vou mean him<br /> to have.&quot; Z.<br /> This letter reads like a comment on the pre-<br /> ceding remarks. All the difficulties, in fact, arose<br /> from the absence of a written agreement.<br /> Had there been a written agreement the author<br /> would have understood that, in taking over the<br /> management of the book the agent undertook to<br /> make the best of it, taking the commission as the<br /> money came in, as long as there was anything to be<br /> made out of it. Also he would have understood<br /> that the agent did not profess—it is not usual for<br /> an agent to profess — to hawk about literary<br /> wares from house to house unsuccessfully for<br /> nothing. It is quite common for an agent to charge<br /> at the outset a certain fee, which is returned in<br /> the case of success.<br /> As for the mistake between the lively and the<br /> religious papers it was tragic, but one would like<br /> to hear the other side before accepting it as a<br /> proof of muddling. Did the author make it quite<br /> clear, on the outside, because agents do not read<br /> MSS., which was intended for the lively, and<br /> which for the serious, paper?<br /> The moral of the letter is that without a<br /> written agreement these misunderstandings are<br /> inevitable. With an agreement they should be<br /> difficult, if not impossible.<br /> BE ONE AND NOTHING ELSE.<br /> IWAS immensely astonished, on reading the<br /> January Author through from end to end—<br /> a thing I invariably do when it manages to<br /> reach me—to see, just on the last page, myself<br /> quoted as an instructor of literary youth. I<br /> never imagined that anyone would come across<br /> my obscure &quot;confession.&quot; The advice, &quot;If you<br /> can beg, borrow, or steal as much as .£50 a year,<br /> cut yourself off from everything and write,&quot; has<br /> rather a reckless and immoral ring about it, and<br /> I should like to correct or justify it a little. For<br /> it is an advice to parents and guardians as much<br /> as to debutants and debutantes.<br /> The desire to be an author is as palpable an<br /> itch as the desire to run away to sea. It can<br /> be nipped in the bud sometimes, but the advisa-<br /> bility of doing so is always a moot question.<br /> Vagabonds and authors are born and not made,<br /> &quot;and like the merlin cheated by a gleam,&quot; as<br /> your New Zealand correspondent beautifully and<br /> appositely puts it, they will soar into the fierce<br /> light sooner or later. Their wings may be of<br /> wax, in which case they will have a heavy fall;<br /> but the fall itself will be the best blight to a<br /> wrong ambition. My opinion is, give them their<br /> head—both of them. My own original impulse<br /> as a boy was to go to sea; I was actually appren-<br /> ticed, when my parents opposed, and I went into<br /> the Civil Service instead. But what is the result?<br /> I have become both a vagabond and an author<br /> after all. There is a story in the Christmas<br /> number of the Sketch, by Dr. Macdonald, which<br /> also illustrates the matter; the young man had<br /> a hard time, but Dr. Macdonald became an<br /> author. In trying to be an author a young man<br /> or woman will find their level, and even if they<br /> fail, their efforts will probably have been as good<br /> as any other beginning in showing them the way,<br /> and giving the opportunities, to adapt themselves<br /> to a more suitable profession. On the other<br /> hand, as you point out in your preface of<br /> „ The Pen and the Book,&quot; authorship is now<br /> just as good and respectable a profession as<br /> the Church or Medicine, and worth having a<br /> try at.<br /> In the first place, then, to parents, I give this<br /> advice. If your son or daughter wants to write,<br /> allow them JE50 a year and three years to try in.<br /> You cannot apprentice them to any other profession<br /> for less, and they will learn a lot about the world<br /> which will serve them in good stead if they fail<br /> in literature. They may become editors or pub-<br /> lishers, for instance, a business as good as shop-<br /> keeping; or literary journalists, which you may<br /> be sure they will not do if they are fitted for<br /> more active pursuits.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 234 (#246) ############################################<br /> <br /> 234<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Secondly, to young men between twenty and<br /> thirty, who, after being put in the wrong grooves<br /> at the start, think they can be authors. If you<br /> have got no money or rich relatives, you have no<br /> choice; but if you have got either, I repeat,<br /> chuck up everything and write. .£100 can be<br /> made to last you two years, and that will be long<br /> enough if you are already a man. Mr. Le<br /> Gallienne once talked about &quot;the paltry .£250 a<br /> year&quot; which a millionaire could so easily spare to<br /> patronise a poet. If a man feels he needs this<br /> income for writing he probably has mistaken the<br /> profession of literature for the profession of<br /> society. .£50 a year is enough; £100 a year is<br /> comfort. You only want a little attic at .£ 12 a<br /> year, and tea and bread and bacon at is. a day,<br /> or say £20 a year, and one old suit of clothes<br /> and an overcoat. This still leaves you £10<br /> for tobacco and the gallery of a theatre and a<br /> penny paper. When I said &quot;cut yourself off<br /> from everything &quot; I was thinking particularly of<br /> society. The society which requires a clean shirt<br /> and a tall hat will not benefit your work. I<br /> presume, of course, that you have had enough<br /> &quot;experiences,&quot; have seen enough &quot;colour,&quot; to<br /> provide you with copy for your trial. If not, you<br /> must earn your living in some more usual way<br /> until you /tare &quot; copy.&quot;<br /> Believing that you can write implies that you<br /> have something to write about; that you have<br /> been in love or seen the world. This is your<br /> wealth; the rent and food money is merely the<br /> broker&#039;s commission on your investment. You<br /> mean to speculate on your brain-wealth; then do<br /> it thoroughly.<br /> Precept without example is nothing; the only<br /> example a man knows is himself, and since I<br /> have already, when I thought I had done with<br /> literature, made a humiliating exhibition of my-<br /> self, I shall do so again. Hereby I convey my<br /> first maxim: never go back on yourself. If you<br /> commit a folly, bluff it out; it is your follies<br /> which mark your character, and by your cha-<br /> racter you must stand or fall. Never act; never<br /> try to be other than you are. Practise self-<br /> control, especially in writing to publishers and<br /> papers; but when you have made a mistake do<br /> not repine, do not think that you have irretriev-<br /> ably belittled yourself, but let your dead<br /> blunders be incentives, be stepping stones to<br /> things of better fame. In the same way with<br /> your work; teach yourself by failure. Keep<br /> before you unceasingly the ambition of success,<br /> and never allow the disgrace of an idiotic or con-<br /> temptible book to deter you from wiping out its<br /> shame by a better. There is room in the world,<br /> and time in life, for many blunders, and in litera-<br /> ture, as in business and in war, one victory con-<br /> dones a thousand defeats. Here I am using<br /> myself as example—I hope an encouraging<br /> example. I have made a notorious exhibition of<br /> myself both in politics, in literature, and in<br /> society; but I cast these follies behind me and<br /> present myself again, determined to retrieve<br /> them.<br /> Besides the blunders of conceit there stands<br /> before most of us the damnable crevice of<br /> poverty. I again offer myself as an example of<br /> persistence. I will no longer go back on myself<br /> and ape, as I have long done, the secure suffi-<br /> ciency of a man of means. My sufficiency is<br /> myself now, and it is better than money. Six<br /> years ago I embarked on literature with a capital<br /> of .£15, and managed to place four books. Twice<br /> I was driven into slavery by need, and I have<br /> calculated that exactly three years out of five<br /> were taken up with the sordid troubles of mere<br /> living. A year ago I could stand it no longer,<br /> and left England, believing myself finally defeated.<br /> After six months of vagabondage, with a capital of<br /> £5, I came back as near to the market as I could<br /> beat, and wrote another book. I did not seek<br /> work; I practised my gospel of living on my<br /> capital and writing. The capital being small the<br /> living had to be exiguous and the writing hard.<br /> I spread the 25 dollars over two months, and<br /> wrote my book in that time, fiuishing almost to<br /> the miuute on Christmas day. You see, then,<br /> that if you have fifty pounds and &quot;copy &quot; you<br /> are a millionaire; lucky, indeed, if you have an<br /> allowance of .£50 a year for three years. And<br /> yet it means at a maximum but a capital of<br /> .£200 to save a man from three years of absolutely<br /> barren and heart-breaking waste and experiences<br /> which render his work morbid, pessimistic,<br /> detrimental! Here am I, at the age of thirty,<br /> after publishing several books and stories,<br /> stranded high and dry in ruined health, trying to<br /> hold together till the tide turns and floats me<br /> again, through no vice, inaptitude, or lack of<br /> diligence I swear, but simply because I have<br /> never been able to get two consecutive years of<br /> assured living. I repudiate any suspicion that I<br /> am asking for help; 1 have stood by myself long<br /> enough to stand by myself to the end. But I<br /> know the reason of my poverty has from the<br /> beginning been the contempt of my relatives for<br /> the profession I have adopted, and I give myself<br /> as a warning to other parents who obstinately<br /> condemn their sons and daughters to go through<br /> a similar experience. Although I am averse to<br /> logrolling, and have never had a &quot; paragraph &quot; in<br /> The Author during a membership of some years,<br /> I shall take the liberty of referring you to a<br /> second instalment of my &quot;confessions&quot; in the<br /> January number of the New Century Review.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 235 (#247) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 235<br /> It shows how the writing itch prevails over all<br /> resolutions of abandonment, and gives also, I<br /> think, a good hint how to isolate yourself and<br /> seek health and copy at the same time.<br /> In conclusion, I will say this. Whether I shall<br /> turn the corner this time remains to be seen; but<br /> for the encouragement of the faltering I declare<br /> that, although my noviciate of hardship has been<br /> prolonged beyond the two and beyond the live<br /> years, I am still perfectly happy, and confident,<br /> if my precarious health lasts out, of ultimate<br /> success, and more assured to-day than ever that<br /> if I had been able to &quot; stick to writing and nothing<br /> else &quot; from the beginning I should by this time<br /> have been earning a &quot;respectable living.&quot; On<br /> the other hand, always supposing I live long<br /> enough, I shall probably rejoice in my disap-<br /> pointments later on; for I have this to add—and<br /> it is a sort of warning also—that whereas six<br /> years ago I thought I knew everything, was a<br /> full-grown man, I only now begin to see how<br /> little of life I know. But if any of you should<br /> happen to have read my book &quot; Max,&quot; which I<br /> wrote just four years ago, you will see a marked<br /> difference between my despair then and my con-<br /> fidence now. You will discover that your own<br /> literary ambition is far more tough and tenacious<br /> than you think. If you have got it in you, you<br /> will get there—never fear. At the same time, it<br /> is foolish to waste your youth in bitterness if you<br /> can go straight forward from the start, and cruel<br /> of parents to force j on to. Julian Croskey.<br /> P.O. Ottawa, Canada, Jan. 30, 1899.<br /> QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.<br /> (See The Author Feb. 1899).<br /> I.<br /> IBEG leave to recommend the &quot; Cyclopaedia<br /> of Practical Quotations,&quot; by Hoyt and<br /> Ward. According to that work, p. 87, the<br /> lines alluded to run thus:<br /> Perhaps it was right to dissemble your love,<br /> Bat why did yon kick me down stairs &#039;&lt;<br /> The reference is given to J. P. Kemble,&quot; The<br /> Panel,&quot; act i., sc. 1. Walter W. Skeat.<br /> The lines quoted by Mr. J. M. Lely may be<br /> found in at least three places, and, apparently,<br /> without any interchange of acknowledgment.<br /> They appear in Debrett&#039;s &quot;Asylum for Fugitive<br /> Pieces,&quot; Vol. I., p. 15; and in John Philip<br /> Kemble&#039;s play &quot; The Panel,&quot; act i., sc. i., Kemble<br /> has clearly borrowed and altered the lines from<br /> what may be claimed as the original source,<br /> Isaac Bickerstaff&#039;s comedy, &quot;&#039;Tis Well it&#039;s no<br /> Worse.&quot; They form part of a song, and the full<br /> quatrain, as usually given, runs:<br /> &quot;When late I attempted your pity to move<br /> Why seemed yon so deaf to my prayers?<br /> Perhaps it was right to dissemble yonr love,<br /> Bnt why did you kiok me down stairs?&quot;<br /> James M. Graham.<br /> [Edith Charlton Anne and E. C. Ricketts also-<br /> send replies, which are in similar terms to the<br /> above.—Ed,]<br /> I am strongly reminded of some lines of<br /> Heinrich Heine:<br /> Das Schworen in der Ordnung war,<br /> Das Beissen war iiberfliissig.<br /> This passage is quoted by George Meredith in<br /> chap. iv. of &quot;The Tragic Comedians,&quot; where we<br /> find a most eloquent dialogue between hero<br /> and heroine—Alvan and Clotilde. The chapter<br /> bristles with fine thought, and of these special<br /> lines repeated by Alvan to the lady Mr. M-<br /> calls them &quot; a verse that speaks of the superfluous-<br /> ness of a faithless lady&#039;s vowing bite,&quot; translating<br /> them thus:<br /> The kisses were in the course of things,<br /> The &quot; bite&quot; was a needless addition.<br /> JX—&quot;Who Am I Like?&quot; .<br /> The verb &quot; to be &quot; governs the nominative case;<br /> thus, &quot;who am I like ?&quot; is correct, the &quot;am I&quot;<br /> being present tense of the verb &quot;to be.&quot; Most<br /> verbs govern the accusative, thus, anolher<br /> rendering of the question could be &quot;whom do I<br /> resemble?&quot;<br /> Next question—&quot; Whomsoever he may be &quot; is<br /> wrong ; it should be &quot; whosoever,&quot; the &quot; may bo&quot;<br /> being the subjunctive mood of the verb &quot;to be.&quot;<br /> _ Grammar.<br /> III.—Wanted, Instructions.<br /> 1. &quot;Forbears&quot; is frequently used when<br /> &quot;forebears &quot;—i.e., forebe-ers—is evidently meant,<br /> and that even in literary journals. No doubt the<br /> printer is in fault.<br /> 2. Some educated people are in the habit of<br /> using the verb &quot;infer&quot; in the place of &quot;imply.&quot;<br /> Surely, to &quot;infer&quot; means to draw an inference.<br /> You infer from what I said something which I<br /> did not mean to imply.<br /> 3. Will someone of authority lay down the<br /> law on the subject of the &quot;false genitive,&quot;<br /> abhorred of Mr. Gladstone? Tastes no doubt<br /> differ, but to some ears such a locution as &quot;I<br /> object to him coming to me &quot; is simply hideous,<br /> though intelligible. But when one reads, &quot;I<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 236 (#248) ############################################<br /> <br /> 236<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> remember the Prince coming to our town to lay<br /> the first stone,&quot; one is in doubt. It is one<br /> thing to remember the fact of the Prince&#039;s<br /> coming, quite another to remember the Prince<br /> himself. &quot;There is, I think, no fear of you<br /> making such an exhibition of yourself.&quot; Gram-<br /> matically, this surely means, &quot;There is no fear of<br /> you who are, or when you are, making such an<br /> exhibition of yourself.&quot; For, if &quot; making &quot; is not a<br /> present participle, agreeing with &quot;you,&quot; it must<br /> be a substantive, in which case, how is the<br /> sentence to be analysed ?&quot; He relied on this<br /> man leaving the country before the disclosure<br /> was made.&quot; Now this does not mean that he<br /> relied on the man, who was leaving the country;<br /> far from it; he trusted him so little that he<br /> wanted him out af the way. In other words, he<br /> relied on the man&#039;s withdrawal. If &quot; leaving &quot;is<br /> a verbal substantive, why should man receive<br /> different treatment when conjoined with &quot;leav-<br /> ing&quot; than that accorded to it when conjoined<br /> with withdrawal? The old rule, that when two<br /> substantives come together one must be in the<br /> genitive, would seem to be enough, but the<br /> increasing frequency of the false genitive, and<br /> that in the writings of literary persons, indicates<br /> the need for some authoritative pronouncement<br /> on the subject. &quot;I defy any one to read a page<br /> of the poem without it getting hopelessly on his<br /> nerves,&quot; is a sentence which it would be interesting<br /> to see analysed.<br /> 4. &#039;.&#039;Umbrellas repaired while waiting&quot; is an<br /> announcement at which one smiles. Similar, and<br /> even worse sentences are continually meeting one<br /> in the daily Press; e.g., &quot;While stationed at<br /> X an incident occurred.&quot; One would like<br /> to be made acquainted with that stationary<br /> incident. S. G.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—Books for Review.<br /> IN Tlie Author, Feb. 1,1899, p. 203,1 find the<br /> follewing assertion: &quot;Every unknown book<br /> gets from thirty to fifty notices in the<br /> English Press; every book by a known author,<br /> from fifty to one hundred.&quot;<br /> I beg leave to say that such is not my experi-<br /> ence. I have frequently been surprised at the<br /> utter silence of many of the critics with regard to<br /> some of my books which have nevertheless done<br /> well. Out of so many copies sent for review<br /> about one-half are quietly appropriated, and no<br /> sign is given that they have ever been received.<br /> Other critics merely acknowledge the receipt of<br /> the volume, and there leave it. It is one of the<br /> author&#039;s grievances that the sending of a copy to,<br /> let us say, The Omniscient Review by no means<br /> secures the insertion of a notice of it, however<br /> well known the author may be. I also venture<br /> to say that the unknown author is more injured<br /> by this practice of silence than the known one,<br /> and it is to him at least a cruel hardship.<br /> The next time I publish a book I propose to<br /> collect and publish in The Author (if my pub-<br /> lishers approve of it) a list of the reviews that<br /> receive copies, with a note as to whether a notice<br /> was inserted or not, allowing six months for the<br /> notice to appear. If some others would do the<br /> like we should learn much that concerns us all.<br /> Walter W. Skeat.<br /> II.—Ladies in Journalism.<br /> Your letter on the invasion of journalism by<br /> ladies of rank is particularly interesting to me, in<br /> that I am one of the sufferers by it. One has<br /> only to take up a fashionable paper to see that the<br /> greater part of the articles in it are by Lady This<br /> or the Countess of T&#039;other. They may be paid or<br /> they may not, but the fact remains that their<br /> articles crowd out those journalists who would<br /> probably otherwise be employed. For years a<br /> fashionable lady&#039;s newspaper has had articles of<br /> mine accepted, but not published for want of room,<br /> and, of course, until published they are nothing<br /> but waste paper. A few years ago, it was easy to<br /> get 3 guineas for a short story, but lately, send-<br /> ing one to a well-known magazine, it was accepted,<br /> and I received i0*. for it. A Press agent, to<br /> whom I offered one, said, &quot;The fact is, Miss A.,<br /> your story is too good for us. We order them by<br /> the dozen, and pay 7*. a piece for them.&quot; Now,<br /> this state of things could never have come to pass<br /> but for the supply being much beyond the demand.<br /> Unless for a hewer of wood or drawer of water,<br /> living is very difficult, but so long as women can<br /> &quot;see themselves in print&quot; and editors can get<br /> their articles for nothing, it is useless to hope for<br /> better times. _ A Journalist.<br /> III. DELAT8.<br /> I have read with interest the experiences of<br /> some of your correspondents regarding the delay<br /> on the part of editors in returning MSS., and also<br /> the editorial note on page 188 of The Author.<br /> Whether the explanation there suggested is the<br /> correct one or not I am unable to say, but my<br /> experience with two MSS. submitted to the Strand<br /> is that one did not return to me for eight and a<br /> half months, and the other not until three months<br /> had rolled by. Both the manuscripts were<br /> returned in good condition, and I attributed the<br /> delay to the enormous number of MSS. submitted<br /> to the editor.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 237 (#249) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 237<br /> One of the most cruel cuts I ever received was<br /> at the hands of an editor of a magazine that has<br /> lately sprung into being. On May 2 last year I<br /> submitted an article dealing with one phase of<br /> cricket. On Nov. 23 I received it back, with the<br /> intimation that it was not seasonable!<br /> One more experience. Last October I sub-<br /> mitted a MS. to the editor of a reputable<br /> sixpenny magazine. A few days ago I received<br /> an offer of one guinea for the same, an offer which<br /> I enjoyed the luxury of declining. To-day I have<br /> received the manuscript back, and it bears the<br /> truthful statement, presumably in the editorial<br /> handwriting, &quot;4400 w, 5! pp.&quot; Surely a MS.<br /> considered worth printing in a sixpenny magazine<br /> should be worth more than 4*. gd. per 1000 words<br /> (or, deducting the cost of typewriting, 3*. 1 id. per<br /> 1000) to the author? Perhaps I ought to be<br /> thankful that I was not asked to pay the guinea<br /> myself for the honour of publication.<br /> Associate.<br /> IV.—The Vagaries of Criticism.<br /> I am puzzled; I am perplexed; I am mystified.<br /> Will you, Mr. Editor, kindly clear my thoughts<br /> from their burden of doubts? Permit me to<br /> explain, and state my case.<br /> A novel of mine, called &quot; A Social Upheaval,&quot;<br /> has been published lately, and up to the present it<br /> has evoked thirty-five criticisms. Unfortunately,<br /> however, they are in every respect so contradic-<br /> tory that I actually cannot form a clear opinion of<br /> the merits or demerits of my own book. It has<br /> be mercilessly condemned; it has been splendidly<br /> eulogised; it has been pronounced interesting<br /> and dull, witty and silly; whilst its flaws and<br /> defects pointed out by one critic have been con-<br /> strued into virtues and beauties by another!<br /> Of course, I may be advised to believe the<br /> praise and reject the blame; to enjoy the sweets<br /> and cast away the bitters. But I value honest<br /> criticism too highly to be so puerile as to do this,<br /> On the other hand, whom and what am I to<br /> believe when I am told &quot; that I write with skill and<br /> with a keen appreciation of comic situations&quot;;<br /> &quot;that I tire the reader before the end is reached &quot;;<br /> that &quot; my book is worth reading on account of its<br /> agreeable whimsicality &quot;; that &quot;my satire to be<br /> effective must bear some resemblance to the real<br /> thing&quot;; that my female characters &quot;are dis-<br /> tinct types of womankind &quot;; that my characters<br /> lack reality&quot;; that &quot;the language has a<br /> terseness and briskness that gives a character<br /> of vivacity to the story&quot;; that my novel is<br /> &quot;utterly worthless&quot;; that &quot;it is a story in which<br /> there is not a dull page, not even a dull line &quot;;<br /> that &quot; the writing is more than a trifle crude &quot;;<br /> that *&#039; the purpose and method of the work are<br /> alike admirable &quot; ; that &quot; the workmanship is in-<br /> different,&quot; and so on, and so on?<br /> What can I make of these amazing contra-<br /> dictions? How can I reconcile these extremely<br /> opposite opinions? How am I to arrive at the<br /> truth? Will you kindly guide me in the matter?<br /> Isidore G. Ascher.<br /> V.—Illustrations.<br /> May I ask you to notice in your paper a form of<br /> annoyance authors have sometimes to put up with.<br /> A short story of mine was bought from my agents,<br /> some months ago, by the editor of a certain<br /> paper. This month it appears; but, living far in<br /> the country, I knew nothing of the fact till a few<br /> days ago, and then had some difficulty in getting<br /> a copy. It was bad enough to receive no proofs,<br /> and so come in for a few press blunders; but<br /> what is most annoying is to find that it has been<br /> &quot;illustrated&quot; (save the mark !) in a way that is<br /> most offensive. The illustrator has absolutely<br /> ignored each incident of the story he pretends to<br /> represent, as you may see by the copy inclosed,<br /> and the result is that my work is made ridiculous.<br /> There ought to be (perhaps there is) some<br /> remedy for such an outrage as this, since it mav<br /> have a very damaging effect on a beginner in<br /> literature such as your correspondent, B.<br /> VI.—Payment on Acceptance.<br /> 1.<br /> The practice is all too rare certainly, but not so<br /> restricted as &quot;Penman&quot; seems to suggest. Mr.<br /> F. A. Atkins of the Young Man and other<br /> journals, for instance, most promptly and con-<br /> sistently adopts this course. R. Andom.<br /> 11.<br /> In answer to &quot; Penman&#039;s &quot; letter regarding the<br /> Strand, may I remark that he (or she) has not a<br /> very wide knowledge of magazine editors. I can<br /> name at least four which virtually pay on accep-<br /> tance, that is to say, as soon as the hard-driven<br /> editor has decided to use any article or story it is<br /> paid for. Of course, this may not happen till a<br /> considerable time after it is sent. Messrs.<br /> Harmsworth, for example, I have found most con-<br /> siderate in this way.<br /> I cannot say that my own experience of the<br /> Strand bears out &quot;Penman&#039;s&quot; statements; the<br /> only article it ever printed of mine was not paid<br /> for till after it had appeared, and they now hold<br /> two stories of mine which were submitted twelve<br /> months ago at their request, and I cannot get<br /> them returned or used. Alan Oscar,<br /> hi.<br /> If your correspondent had written for the<br /> Wide World Magazine he would have discovered<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 238 (#250) ############################################<br /> <br /> 238<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> that the Strand is not the only one which pays<br /> for articles on acceptance. I am pleased to offer<br /> my humble testimony to the extreme courtesy<br /> which I have received at the hands of the editor<br /> of the Wide World, who invariably—I believe I<br /> may say—sends a cheque directly he decides to<br /> accept a MS. Edith Charlton Anne.<br /> VII.—Typewriting as a Profession.<br /> I rejoice to see that The Author is taking up<br /> the rights of the private typist versus the type-<br /> writing office, an institution which I find it<br /> difficult to respect.<br /> A friend of mine, &quot;a lady by birth, and want<br /> of education,&quot; found herself last year under the<br /> necessity of earning a living. A relative (who<br /> herself had to undertake clerk&#039;s work in order to<br /> afford it) paid some .£30 to an office for the<br /> training of secretaries that her niece might be<br /> taught shorthand and typewriting. After work-<br /> ing for the benefit of the office for some months<br /> she was pronounced proficient, and with much<br /> pleasure I hastened to secure for her her first<br /> work, the typing of two forthcoming books, good<br /> MSS., not technical, at the rate of gd. a thousand.<br /> She must first, however, consult the lady who<br /> trained her, and returned primed with scorn for<br /> such an offer, instructed in various &quot;notions,&quot;<br /> and told that to undertake the work at anything<br /> less than from I*, to is. $d. per thousand was an<br /> injustice to herself and other women.<br /> After remaining without employment for some<br /> time, she finally undertook the task &quot;to oblige.&quot;<br /> The fact that another woman, brought up in<br /> greater luxury, older, and therefore less prepared<br /> for change of circumstances than herself, had<br /> turned-to and gone to work to pay for her train-<br /> ing, did not count for much in the problem. Now<br /> and then, the office has sent her stray bits of ill-<br /> paid miscellaneous work, such as doing charity<br /> accounts, or sending out invitations. Any typing<br /> which comes to the office is apparently reserved<br /> for students to practise upon, and shorthand does<br /> not seem to be in demand.<br /> After a year of this sort of work—which was of<br /> a kind which led to expenditure of money in<br /> smarter clothes than she would have needed at<br /> home, and in omnibus fares—she at length<br /> obtained a position which, under other circum-<br /> stances, we should have described as that of a<br /> &quot;companion,&quot; but which—in allusion, I suppose,<br /> to the training—is called a &quot; secretaryship.&quot; The<br /> salary is .£40 a year; £50 when non-resident.<br /> I represented the facts to the Society for the<br /> Employment of Women, but was severely rebuked<br /> for offering starvation wages. Next, I took at<br /> random from the cover of The Author the address<br /> of a typist, who has done my work admirably at<br /> orf. a 1000 ever since. She has said nothing<br /> about starvation, perhaps because she does not<br /> pay rent in Victoria or Berners-street.<br /> A. Goodrich Freer.<br /> VIII.—On Selling Review Copies.<br /> I have read with much interest Sir Walter<br /> Besant&#039;s paragraph in The Author of Jan. 2<br /> concerning review copies. Would it not be<br /> possible to render review books unsaleable by<br /> some such process as unused stamps undergo<br /> when they are sold to dealers? They are punched.<br /> Review copies might have their pages severed<br /> horizontally midway by a cut penetrating a third<br /> of the page. It would be equivalent to a slight<br /> tear of a couple of inches on each page. The<br /> reviewer would have no difficulty, but the volume<br /> would not stand any wear after such treatment.<br /> Fanny Emily Penny.<br /> The Garrison Chaplain&#039;s Quarters,<br /> Fort Saint George, S. India, Jan. 26.<br /> IX.—Wanted—A Black List.<br /> Seeing that many editors not only refuse to<br /> return unsuitable MSS., to answer inquiries<br /> respecting them, but even appear to delight in<br /> treating uninvited contributors with contemp-<br /> tuous and—in my opinion—scandalous indiffer-<br /> ence, and this in spite of the letters and com-<br /> plaints the Society of Authors and The Author<br /> are continually receiving and publishing—I would<br /> suggest that the methods of the Society are<br /> stiffened.<br /> It seems to me that hints, innuendoes, anony-<br /> mous indications, and covert references are too<br /> mild to touch the case-hardened hides of the<br /> fraternity in question.<br /> I would, therefore, advocate a black list, to be<br /> openly, nay, ostentatiously displayed iu the<br /> Society&#039;s offices, and kept standing in the columns<br /> of The Author.<br /> Upon this list let the names of dishonest pub-<br /> lishers, unscrupulous editors, literary vultures of<br /> every kind, and such sharks as the inexperienced<br /> writer needs to shun, figure prominently and<br /> persistently.<br /> Before placing a name on the list, let the<br /> offence committed be stated succinctly.<br /> The law of libel is a serious fence to leap, I<br /> admit; but surely the Society would have less<br /> cause to dread an appearance in court than the<br /> mean rascals whose practices would, at worst, be<br /> exposed.<br /> I believe Truth has on several occasions<br /> pilloried a certain publishing firm—unfortunately<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 239 (#251) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 239<br /> still existing—without incurring pains or penalties<br /> for its service to common honesty.<br /> Of one thing I am convinced, however. To treat<br /> with consideration the feelings of persons devoid<br /> even of business principle, to say nothing of<br /> gentlemanly instinct, is futile. A black list would<br /> at least warn members of the Society whom to<br /> avoid, even though it failed to reach outside<br /> stragglers in the literary quagmire.<br /> Herbert W. Smith.<br /> BOOK TALE.<br /> MR. ARTHUR H. BEAVAN has written<br /> a memoir of James and Horace Smith,<br /> the authors of &quot;The Rejected Addresses.&quot;<br /> No complete life of the brothers has hitherto<br /> appeared, owing to family objections. &quot;The<br /> Rejected Addresses&quot; was published in 1812.<br /> Murray could have bought the copyright for<br /> £20, but refused the offer. Seven years later,<br /> after the book had run through sixteen editions<br /> and brought its authors jEi000, Murray pur-<br /> chased the copyright for .£131. Mr. Beavan&#039;s<br /> life will contain five portraits, and will be pub-<br /> lished by Messrs. Hurst and Blackett.<br /> Mr. Richard Whitling, author of .&#039; The Island,&quot;<br /> has written a new work of humorous social<br /> satire entitled &quot;No. 5, John-street,&quot; which Mr.<br /> Grant Richards will publi&amp;h.<br /> Mrs. Alfred Sedgwick&#039;s (Mrs. Andrew Dean)<br /> new novel &quot;Cousin Ivo&quot; will be published this<br /> month by Messrs. A. and G. Black. It has been<br /> appearing in the weekly edition of the Times.<br /> In &quot;The Hooligan Nights&quot; Mr. Clarence Rook<br /> gives some studies from personal observation of<br /> the notorious class of criminals known of late in<br /> London by the generic name &quot; Hooligan.&quot; The<br /> volume will be published by Mr. Grant Richards.<br /> Mr. Morley Roberts calls his new novel &quot;A<br /> Son of Empire.&quot; The two chief characters<br /> in the book are said to be portraits of Sir Richard<br /> and Lady Burton, and another a portrait of Mr.<br /> Rhodes. The story deals with military life.<br /> Carlyle&#039;s letters to his sister, Janet Hanning,<br /> which appeared in several recent numbers of the<br /> Atlantic Monthly, will be published shortly in a<br /> volume by Messrs. Chapman and Hall.<br /> Mrs. Fuller-Maitland and Sir Frederick Pollock<br /> are joint authors of the &quot;Etchingham Letters,&quot;<br /> which have been appearing in the Cornhill<br /> Magazine for the last few months. The letters<br /> will be published in a volume on an early date by<br /> Messrs. Smith, Elder, and Co.<br /> A new series of monographs on great painters<br /> has been projected by Messrs. Bell. The first<br /> volume to appear will be &quot;Raphael,&quot; by Mr. H.<br /> Strachey,&quot; and the others include &quot;Velasquez,&quot;<br /> by Mr. R. A. M. Stevenson; *&#039; Andrea del<br /> Sarto,&quot; by Miss H. Guinness; &quot; Michael A ngelo,&quot;<br /> by Mr. C. Holroyd; &quot;Rembrandt,&quot; by Mr.<br /> Malcolm Bell; and &quot; Turner,&quot; by Mr. C. F. Bell.<br /> Sir Edward Grey has written a book of<br /> personal experiences as an angler which will form<br /> the first volume of the Haddon Library, edited by<br /> the Marquis of Granby and Mr. George A. B.<br /> Dewar. It will be published by Messrs. Dent<br /> this month.<br /> Mr. Grant Allen&#039;s new story, &quot;Miss Cayley&#039;s<br /> Adventures,&quot; which has been running in the<br /> Strand Magazine, will be published in the spring<br /> by Mr. Grant Richards.<br /> Mr. Hilaire Belloc is the author of a forth-<br /> coming &quot; Life of Danton,&quot; which is based largely<br /> on documents hitherto unknown. The author has<br /> been assisted by Danton&#039;s family, and also by Dr.<br /> Robinet, himself the author of a well-known<br /> biography of the great French revolutionary. Mr.<br /> Belloc&#039;s work will be published immediately by<br /> Messrs. Nisbet.<br /> Mr. William Archer has been commissioned by<br /> the Pall Mall Magazine to proceed to America<br /> for the purpose of writing a series of articles on<br /> the American stage. He sailed a few days ago.<br /> A set of the Kelmscott Press publications,<br /> numbering fifty-three, and of an original value of<br /> about .£150, was sold at Sotheby&#039;s rooms the<br /> other day for .£442 15s. 6d. The same firm were<br /> to disperse by auction the valuable collection of<br /> historical papers and manuscripts belonging to<br /> the Earl of Hardwicke. Shortly before the day<br /> fixed for the sale, however, the collection was<br /> purchased by the British Museum, much to the<br /> satisfaction of students of history.<br /> &quot;Contraband of War&quot; is the title of a new<br /> work by Mr. M. P. Shiel (author of &quot; The Yellow<br /> Danger&quot;), which will be issued by Mr. Grant<br /> Richards in the spring.<br /> Another novel dealing with theatrical life. This<br /> will bo &quot;On the Edge of a Precipice,&quot; by Miss<br /> Maiy Angela Dickens, which Messrs. Hutchinson<br /> will publish shortly.<br /> Mr. F. C. Constable has written a humorous<br /> story, entitled &quot;Morgan Hailsham,&quot; which Mr.<br /> Grant Richards will bring out in the spring.<br /> A novel of adventure, by Mr. Tom Gallon,<br /> author of &quot; Tatterley,&quot; will be published shortly<br /> by Messrs. Hutchinson, entitled &quot;The Kingdom<br /> of Hate.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 240 (#252) ############################################<br /> <br /> 240<br /> THE A UTHOR.<br /> Two new books by Mr. Le Gallienne will appear<br /> shortly. &#039;&#039;Young Lives&quot; is a novel, dealing<br /> with a group of young people who have ideals in<br /> life. It will be published by Arrowsmith. The<br /> second book is a fairy tale embodying a study<br /> of the artistic temperament. Mr. Lane will<br /> publish it under the title &quot;The Worshipper of<br /> the Image.&quot;<br /> Professor Hereford is translating Ibsen&#039;s<br /> &quot;Love&#039;s Comedy,&quot; for publication as a volume in<br /> the series of &quot; Modern Plays,&quot; edited by Mr. E.<br /> Brimley Johnson and Mr. Erichsen, and pub-<br /> lished by Messrs. Duckworth. Mr. Erichsen is<br /> also translating Strindberg&#039;s &quot;Fadren&quot; (&quot; The<br /> Father &quot;).<br /> In an interview in the New York Outlook, Mr.<br /> R. W. Gilder, editor of the Century Magazine,<br /> expresses his conviction that people are beginning<br /> ta tire of photographic reproductions in maga-<br /> zines and periodicals, and that in the future the<br /> tendency will be in favour of original artistic<br /> work. While the photograph has had a corrective<br /> effect, and make illustrators truer to fact, it has<br /> on the other hand made them more prosaic; and<br /> Mr. Gilder thinks we shall soon witness a new<br /> generation of real illustrators.<br /> It has been evident for some time to all serious<br /> lovers of English poetry, says Mr. Stephen<br /> Phillips in an article which appears in the<br /> February number of the Dome, that modern<br /> verse is suffering from inanition. Perhaps the<br /> only wave of emotion lately has been roused by<br /> the splendour and the fact of empire; but this<br /> song can never be a permanent possession of<br /> mankind ; it is the pecan of materialism, restricted,<br /> anti-poetic, and is already beginning to pall upon<br /> us. Mr. Phillips&#039; article is called &quot;A Field for<br /> Modern Verse,&quot; and this is the suggestion he<br /> makes:—<br /> I would venture to suggest, in all humility, a subject for<br /> verse which is co-extensive, not merely with a single empire,<br /> but with the fate and destiny of all mankind. The revela-<br /> tion, then, of the life after death, which is slowly filtering<br /> into the intellect and imagination of the modern world is,<br /> as it seems to me, filled with tremendous possibilities of<br /> vision and melody. . . . The general picture of a<br /> world beyond the grave, which is gradually usurping the<br /> modern imagination, would seem at first sight to be not far<br /> removed from the scheme of Dante. In communications<br /> made through trance, or by the governed hand, we are<br /> again permitted to view realms of darkness, of ice, of<br /> twilight, of glory. But there is this essential and transcen-<br /> dent difference between the medieval and the modern con-<br /> ception—that whereas Dante imagined a definite place of<br /> darkness, or fire, or beauty, to which the soul repaired, we<br /> are now shown that the soul creates its own atmosphere,<br /> environment, and scenery.<br /> Miss Ellen Thorneycroft Fowler has completed<br /> a new novel.<br /> Joseph Hatton&#039;s new story in the bauds of the<br /> Tillotson syndicate will appear serially in a select<br /> number of weekly journals in England, the<br /> Colonies, and America, beginning next month.<br /> It is said to be a careful and elaborate study of<br /> Old London in the days of Jonathan Wild, whose<br /> portraiture is a leading feature of the story. The<br /> romance moves on different lines from those<br /> adopted by Mr. Hattou in his drama of &quot;Jack<br /> Sheppard,&quot; opening romantically on &quot; the King&#039;s<br /> Highway&quot; in the North, Jonathan face to face<br /> with two of his own &quot;knights of the road &quot;—for<br /> Jonathan was not only the thief-taker, but the<br /> thief-employer, the chief of such an organisation<br /> of knavery as the world has rarely paralleled,<br /> even in the &quot;palmy days of the bandit and the<br /> buccaneer.&quot; Mr. Hattou has relieved the sordid<br /> adventures of Jonathan and his army of adven-<br /> turers with a love story that links town and<br /> country and the Thames and the sea with inci-<br /> dents of a semi-historical character; and the<br /> novel is entitled &quot; When Rogues Fall Out.&quot;<br /> &quot;Loup-Garou!&quot; is the title given by Mr.<br /> Eden Philpotts to a new volume of stories deal-<br /> ing with West Indian Life, which he is issuing<br /> through Messrs. Sands.<br /> The Daily Mail is issuing &quot; The Best Hundred<br /> Books,&quot; and the Daily Telegraph is about to<br /> issue &quot;The Best Hundred Novels.&quot; The latter<br /> selection will include many modern novels.<br /> Dean Stubbs is publishing through Unwiu a<br /> volume of verse entitled Brihtnoth&#039;s Prayer and<br /> Other Poems.&quot; Brihtnoth was an ealdorman of<br /> East Auglia, aud one of the founders of Ely.<br /> The poem, says the Dean of Ely, is a rescript and<br /> expansion of &quot;that &quot;almost Homeric &quot; ballad, the<br /> &quot;Battle of Maldon,&quot; and a re-setting of the<br /> hero&#039;s death cry, &quot; God, I thank Thee for all the<br /> joy I have had in life.&quot;<br /> Mr. T. Sturge Moore is a new poet, whose first<br /> book, &quot;The Vinedresser,&quot; will be published in a<br /> few days by the Unicorn Press.<br /> Le Droit cTAuteitr publishes tables showing<br /> the production of books in Russia (exclusive of<br /> Finland) in the years 1890 to 1895. The total<br /> publications in Russian for these years was<br /> 42,146, and in foreign languages 12,086. Books<br /> on theology outnumbered those of any other<br /> class.<br /> Dr. Richard Garnett is about to retire from the<br /> post of Keeper of Printed Books at the British<br /> Museum. He has been connected with the<br /> Museum for forty-seven years, and, in addition to<br /> the large number of lxioks he has written, he<br /> edited the British Museum Catalogue from 1881<br /> to 1890. .. • , &#039;.: ,!..,,•&#039;-;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 241 (#253) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 241<br /> During the past month Mr. Ruskin celebrated<br /> his eightieth birthday (Feb. 8) and Mr. Meredith<br /> his seventy-first (Feb. 12). Mr. Ruskin was<br /> made the recipient of an address from a number<br /> of distinguished admirers, but a proposal that he<br /> should sit to Mr. Holman Hunt for his portrait<br /> has been abandoned, as Mr. Ruskin could not<br /> endure the fatigue which this would entail.<br /> As a bitter evidence of the deterioration of the<br /> bookselling business, the writer of &quot;Literary<br /> Gossip &quot; in the Globe relates an incident which<br /> occurred a few days ago in one of the best known<br /> of London book shops. With eveiy circumstance<br /> of dignity an old lady was helped from her<br /> carriage. The footman hastened to the door of<br /> the shop, and she passed majestically in, and was<br /> shown into a chair by the principal assistant, a<br /> man steeped in the lore of books, prepared at a<br /> moment&#039;s notice to advise a course of reading in<br /> any line whatsoever. The old lady settled her-<br /> self in comfort, arranged her flounces, glanced<br /> round the teeming shelves, and asked sweetly,<br /> &quot;Do you keep pink ham frills?&quot;<br /> The sixth International Press Congress will be<br /> held at Rome, opening on April 6.<br /> &quot;The Cardinal&#039;s Page,&quot; Mr. James Baker&#039;s<br /> new historical romance, has quickly gone into a<br /> third edition—a fact which speaks for itself.<br /> The author was lately elected a member of<br /> the Council of the National Home Reading<br /> Union.<br /> &quot;A Semi-Detached Marriage&quot; is the title of<br /> Miss Arabella Kenealy&#039;s forthcoming novel—to<br /> be issued next month by Messrs. Hutchinson.<br /> &quot;Forbidden Banns&quot; is the title of Annabel<br /> Gray&#039;s new novel, which will be published by<br /> Messrs. F. V. White and Co., and appears this<br /> month. The story has had a very successful run<br /> as a serial in the Daily Mail. It may inte-<br /> rest those who are studying the present ritual<br /> question.<br /> The Religious Tract Society issued on Feb. 24,<br /> in the form of the March supplement to the<br /> Girl&#039;s Own Paper, a story by Miss H. M. Burn-<br /> side, entitled &quot;The Deaf Girl Next Door: or,<br /> Marjory&#039;s Life Work.&quot; This story deals with the<br /> special difficulties of the deaf and deaf mutes, and<br /> i-,f those with whom they associate; and it is<br /> hoped, by rousing public interest in this afflicted<br /> class, it will aid their cause. The writer is herself<br /> deaf.<br /> E. Livingston Prescott&#039;s new novel, &quot;Helot and<br /> Hero,&quot; is announced for March 14. It is semi-<br /> military, and will form—-though of a more cheer-<br /> ful character—a companion volume to &quot;Scarlet<br /> and Steel,&quot; now in its fourth edition. The scene<br /> of the closing chapters is the N.W. frontier of<br /> India. Simpkin, Marshall, and Co. are the pub-<br /> lishers.<br /> The marriage chest of the &quot; Father of Angling&quot;<br /> has been found in a lumber-room at Warwick-<br /> Castle. The information it supplies refers to his<br /> first wife (a great-grandniece of Cranmer), and<br /> is as follows :—<br /> Izaak Walton—Rachael Ploud.<br /> Joyned Together in ye Holie Bonde of Wedlocke<br /> On ye 27th Daie of Deoembre A 1626 D.<br /> We once were two, we two made one;<br /> We no more two, through life bee one.<br /> A new volume of the late Mr. R. H. Hutton&#039;a<br /> &quot;Essays in the Spectator&quot; is about to be published<br /> in Messrs. Macmillan&#039;s Eversley Series. The<br /> essays deal mair ly with ecclesiastical and theo-<br /> logical questions, in which the late editor of the<br /> Spectator took so keen an interest.<br /> Some time ago the Sir Walter Scott West-<br /> minster Memorial Committee presented a<br /> replica of the bust of Sir Walter Scott to the<br /> public library of Boston, U.S.A. In connection<br /> therewith Mr. Riclrard Lees, town clerk of the<br /> burgh of Galashiels, who is honorary secretary<br /> of the memorial committee, was recently waited<br /> upon by Mr. Fiske Warren, of Boston, at the<br /> request of the library trustees, and presented<br /> with an acknowledgment of the bust. In the<br /> address to the memorial committee the trustees<br /> express their gratefulness to the subscribers for<br /> their generosity, and still more for the spirit<br /> which prompted the gift. They recognise in this<br /> act of international courtesy a mark of the grow-<br /> ing harmony of interests between the two leading<br /> Powers in the civilisation of the world. The bust<br /> will shortly be formally unveiled at the opening<br /> of a new lecture hall in the library buildings.<br /> In the new edition of his &quot;Democracy and<br /> Liberty,&quot; published recently by Messrs. Long-<br /> mans, Green, and Co., Mr. Lecky deals in detail<br /> with the work and character of Mr. Gladstone.<br /> Of Gladstone the writer, Mr. Lecky says:<br /> Few professed authors have written more or more vari-<br /> ously. Pamphlets on Ritualism, on Vaticanism, on Bulgarian<br /> Atrocities—elaborate books in defenoe of the Christian<br /> religion, a metrical translation of Horace, countless artioles<br /> of the most miscellaneous character followed each other in<br /> swift succession. Mere expression, whether in writing or<br /> speaking, seems to have cob! him nothing, and it was<br /> characteristic of him that the book which he called his<br /> &quot;Gleanings&quot; extended to some seven or eight volumes.<br /> Considering the life he led the literary production of his<br /> last years is truly wonderful, thongh it shows a kind of<br /> intellect that was much more wonderful in quantity than in<br /> quality. Perhaps the nearest modern parallel to his many-<br /> sided activity and to his astonishing copiousness of expres-<br /> sion is to be found in Henry Brougham, who was once<br /> deemed the most extraordinary of Englishmen, though he is<br /> now little more than a name.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 242 (#254) ############################################<br /> <br /> 242<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Mr. Thomas Burleigh is about to publish for<br /> Mr. J. C. Bailey a volume of essays dealing<br /> with eight of the great English letter writers.<br /> Some of them have already appeared in the<br /> Quarterly, the Fortnightly, and elsewhere, while<br /> others now appear for the first time. The title<br /> of the book is &quot;Studies in Some Famous<br /> Letters.&quot;<br /> &quot;Maureen Moore&quot; is the title of an Irish<br /> story by Rupert Alexander, the author of &quot; Bally -<br /> ronan,&quot; &amp;c. It is a romance of &quot;yS, but not<br /> altogether fiction. The publisher will be Mr.<br /> Thomas Burleigh.<br /> Professor Dowden is editing the Arden Shake-<br /> speare, and Mr. George Gissing is editing the<br /> Rochester Dickens—two new series which Messrs.<br /> Methuen are issuing.<br /> Mr. John Bickerdyke has just completed a<br /> romance entitled &quot; The Passing of Prince Rogan.&quot;<br /> It is to a certain extent a story of the sea,<br /> and will have some interest for yachtsmen,<br /> but the author has utilised some of the reve-<br /> lations in recent bankruptcy proceedings. It<br /> will be published in New York by Messrs.<br /> Putnam&#039;s Sons, and in London by Mr. Thomas<br /> Burleigh.<br /> A new higluclass literary and religious weekly,<br /> called Saint Andrew — in sympathy with the<br /> Church of Scotland—has been started in Glasgow.<br /> Emily J. Jenkinson, joint author of &quot;Fiona<br /> Mclver: a Romance of the Western Isles,&quot; is<br /> contributing a serial story entitled &quot;The Twi-<br /> light of the Gods: a tale of Ancient Strathclyde.&quot;<br /> Miss Jenkinson is the daughter of the parish<br /> minister of Innellan, Argyllshire, and is a young<br /> lady still in her teens.<br /> A new edition, in great part re-written, and<br /> considerably enlarged (540 pages of text) of Mr.<br /> Reynolds-Ball&#039;s &quot;Mediterranean Winter Resorts&quot;<br /> (Kegan Paul and Co.) price .6*., was published<br /> last month. Owing to the great bulk of the<br /> book it has also been issued in two volumes,<br /> one volume dealing with the resorts of the South<br /> of Europe, and the others with those of North<br /> Africa and the Mediterranean Islands. Each<br /> volume is sold separately at 3*. 6d. Messrs.<br /> A. and C. Black have just published a revised<br /> .edition of the same author&#039;s &quot; Cares of To-Day.&quot;<br /> THE BOOKS OF THE MONTH.<br /> [Jan. 24 to Feb. 22—287 Books.]<br /> Aarons, S. J. Golden Rules of Gynecology. 1/- Simpkin.<br /> Abbott. L. Life and Letters of Paul the Apostle. 6/- Clarke.<br /> About, Edmond (tr. by Lord Newton). Trentc et Quarante. :i/6.<br /> Arnold.<br /> Alexander, Mrs. Brown, V.C. 6/- Vnwin.<br /> Alford, M. Baptism. 2/- Alexander and S.<br /> Aide, Hamilton Jane Treachel. 6/- Hurst.<br /> All, Ameer Syed. Short History of the Saracens. 7 6 net.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Allen, E. H. Edward FitzGerald&#039;s Rubai&#039;yat of Omar Khayyam, with<br /> original Persian sources, ifce. 7/6. Quaritch.<br /> Annand, James. Forgotten Liberalism. 1 - Ma, Fleet-street, E.C.<br /> Anonymous. Her Soldier Lover. (Family Story-Teller.) 1&#039;-<br /> W. Stevens.<br /> Anonymous (author of &quot;The Banks and the Public&quot;). Banks and<br /> their Oustomers. 1/- E. Wilson.<br /> Anonymous (author of &quot; Lady Windermere&#039;s Fan &quot;). The Importance<br /> of Being Earnest Smithers.<br /> Ansorge, W. J. Under the African Sun. 21/- net. Heinemann.<br /> Appleton, G. W. Francois the Valet 6 - Pearson.<br /> Arbuthnot, Sir A. J. Lord Clive: The Foundation of British Rule in<br /> India. 5/- Unwin.<br /> Aston, W. G. History of Japanese Literature. 6/- Heinemann.<br /> Atkins, J. B. The War in Cuba. 6 - Smith and E.<br /> Atkinson, C. M. The Magistrates&#039; Annual Practice, 1899. Stevens.<br /> . Bacon, L. W. History of American Christianity. 10 6. Clarke.<br /> Baldwin, J. M. The Story of the Mind. 1- Newnes.<br /> Ballinger, J. The Public Libraries and the Schools. School Children<br /> in the Public Libraries. 1/6 net. Sotheran.<br /> Bannatyne, G. A. Thermal Waters of Bath. 2/- Simpkin.<br /> Bannerman, Frances. Milestones. Verses. 3 ti net. Richards.<br /> Bardoux, Jacques (tr. by W. R. Barker). Memories of Oxford.<br /> 2/6 net. Roblnson.<br /> Barr, Robert. The Countess Tekla. ft/- Methuen.<br /> Barrett, W., and Hichens, R. The Daughters of Babylon. 6,-<br /> Macqaeen.<br /> Barry, Sir J. W Streets and Traffic of London. W. Trounce.<br /> Barton, F. T. The Ailments of Horses. 1/- Dean.<br /> Bates, F. G. Rhode Island and the Formation of the Union. 4/- King.<br /> Bateson, Mary (ed. for Royal Hist. Soc.). Duke of Newcastle&#039;s Nar-<br /> rative of the Changes in the Ministry 1765-67. 10/- Longmans.<br /> Beardsley, Aubrey. Second Book of Drawings. 10/6 net. Smithers.<br /> Behnke. Mrs. E. The Speaking Voice. Part II 2/6. Curwen.<br /> Bennett, R , and Elton, J. History of Cor n Mining. Vol. II. Simpkin.<br /> Bierce, A. Fantastic Fables. 3/6. Putnam.<br /> Bindloss, Harold. In the Niger Country. 12/6. Blackwood.<br /> BjOrnson, B. (tr. by H. L. Brtekstad). Paul Lunge and Tora Parsberg.<br /> 5/- Harper.<br /> Blount, Godfrey. Arbor Vitae. 12/6 net. Dent.<br /> Body, Canon. The Guided Life. 1/- Skefflngton.<br /> Bond, Francis. English Cathedrals. Illustrated, i; - Newnes.<br /> Bond, R. W. Zenobla. A Drama. 3/6. Mathews.<br /> Bonney, T. G. Volcanoes. 6/- Murray.<br /> Bowles, F. G. In the Wake of the Sun. Verse. 2,6 net.<br /> Unicorn Press.<br /> Bowles, M. The Amazing Lady. 6/- Heinemann.<br /> Boyd. A. J. (ed. by A. Campbell). The Shellback. 6 - Cassell<br /> .<br /> Bretschneider. E. History of European Botanical Discoveries in<br /> China. 30 &#039;- net. Low.<br /> Brock, A. C. The Cathedral Church of York. 1/6. Bell.<br /> Browning, The Letters of Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett<br /> Barrett, 1845-46. 21/- Smith and E.<br /> Bryant, T. H. Norfolk Churches. Vol 3. 3/6. Norwich Mtixurt<br /> Office.<br /> Button, John. Gwen Penri, a Welsh Idyll. 5/- Stock.<br /> Burdett, Sir F. (ed ). The Nursing Profession. 2,6 net.<br /> Scientific Press.<br /> Burn, A. E. Introduction to the Creeds and to the Te Deum 10/6.<br /> Methuen.<br /> Burton, F. C. The Commercial Management of Engineering Works.<br /> 12/6 net. Manchester: Scientific Publishing Co.<br /> Butler, Sir W, F. Life of Sir George Pomeroy-Colley, 1835-1881.<br /> 21/- Murray.<br /> Campbell, A. (edA The Sound of a Voice that is Still. lied way.<br /> Campbell, R. (ed.). Ruling Cases. Vol. 17. 25/- net Stevens.<br /> C.&#039;arroder, C. H. Bride of God. 6;- White.<br /> Carter, «. History of England. Part 3 (1689-1897) 2 - Relfe.<br /> Cartwright, F. L. The Mystic Rose from the Garden of the King.<br /> 21/- Nichols.<br /> Chapman. E. J. Drama of Two Lives, and other Poems. 2,6. Paul<br /> .<br /> C&#039;havaase, F. J. Plain Words on some Present Day Questions. 1 -<br /> Fro woe.<br /> Churchward, A. Origin and Antiquity of Freemasonry. Causton.<br /> Clark, W. J. Commercial Cuba. 14/- Chapman.<br /> Clarke, A. M. Life of the Hon. Mrs. Edward Petre. 5/6 net<br /> Art and Book Co.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 243 (#255) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 243<br /> Clutlon-Brock, A. York Cathedral. 1/6. Bell.<br /> Coates, Colonel. China and the Open Door. 4 -<br /> ftristol Times ami Mercury.<br /> Cobbett, M. Bottled Holidays for Hume Consumption. 6/- Sands.<br /> Coles, V. S. S. Lenten Meditations. 2/6. Longman.<br /> Compton, B. Edward Meyrick Goulburn, D.D. 5/- Murray.<br /> Congreve, G. Christian Life. 5/- Longman.<br /> Copeman, S. M. Vaccination: its Natural History and Pathology.<br /> 6/- net. Macmillan.<br /> Cox, W. L. P. Some English Church Principles, 1/- net. Young.<br /> Crane. It. A Crusade against Chimney Pots. 1/-<br /> 143, Cannon St., E.C.<br /> Crawlcy-Boevey, A. W. (ed.). The &quot;Perverse Widow.&quot; 42/- net.<br /> Longman.<br /> Crawshaw. E. Scientific Temperance Addresses. 2/- C.E.T.S.<br /> Crlpps-Day, F. H. 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327	https://historysoa.com/items/show/327	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 11 (April 1899)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+11+%28April+1899%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 11 (April 1899)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1899-04-01-The-Author-9-11					245–268																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1899-04-01">1899-04-01</a>							11			18990401	^Ibe Hutbor,<br /> {The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol.IX.—No.ii.] APRIL i, 1899. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Aut/wrs alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notioe that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only. % w<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot bo accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> J7\OB, some years it has been the praotice to insert, in<br /> J every number of The Author, certain &quot;General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices, &amp;c, for the guidanoe<br /> of the reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they ore<br /> direoted cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to oarry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—.<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> fries can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rulp * should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to&#039;sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a speoial charge for &quot; offloe expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, ColonUl, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give np serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both -ides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures oonneoted with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors oarry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will bo their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; but which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those aooount books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no secret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> c c 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 246 (#258) ############################################<br /> <br /> 246 THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> t. IiTVEKY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If, in the<br /> opinion of the Committee and the Solicitors of the Society,<br /> the advice sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor,<br /> the member has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s<br /> solicitors. If the case is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is<br /> desirable, the Committee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s<br /> opinion. All this without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Eemember that questions connected with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Society for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the oase of fraudulent nouses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of everything<br /> important to literature that you may hear or meet with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Society now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> ■tamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the oost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6s. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> oommnnicate to the Editor any points connected with their<br /> work which it would bo advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Offioe without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any oircamstances,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, Ac.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Sucretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending ont a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanced 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correct: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of course, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I.—The Dramatic Sub-Committee.<br /> THE Dramatic Sub-corn m ittee have decided to<br /> call a meeting of all dramatic authors with<br /> a view to their joining the Society in order<br /> to obtain such information as might lead to the<br /> maintenance, definition, and defence of dramatic<br /> property. The meeting will be called for some date<br /> towards the end of April. It is trusted that the<br /> efforts of the Society on behalf of dramatic<br /> authorship and dramatic property will be sub-<br /> stantial and successful.<br /> II.—The Italian Protest.<br /> r.<br /> Attention might be drawn to the following<br /> points with regard to the Italian protest against the<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 247 (#259) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 247<br /> American Act (see p. 2 5 7):—That the Italian cause<br /> of complaint is very real, as publication in America<br /> secures copyright in Italy without even simul-<br /> taneous publication, but publication of Italian<br /> books in Italy does not secure copyright in<br /> America unless the book is first translated, then<br /> the translation forwarded to American publishers<br /> for their acceptance, the terms of the agreement<br /> settled, the type set up in America, and simul-<br /> taneous publication resulting.<br /> The question of the American treaty with<br /> regard to the publication of English books is not<br /> on such a bad basis as that of the Italian treaty,<br /> but still English publication is by no means<br /> reciprocal. We do stipulate for simultaneous<br /> publication, which is not necessary for an American<br /> to secure copyright in Italy, so that the Americans<br /> are put to some slight inconvenience ; but we do<br /> not stipulate for the printing of the book in<br /> England and the other trade difficulties. It is a<br /> question, however, whether the Italians are well<br /> advised in turning the wheel back in the evolu-<br /> tion of copyright property, and whether England<br /> would be well advised in turning the wheel back<br /> by enforcing printing, &amp;c., in England. Ought it<br /> not to be the doctrine of both nations (England<br /> and Italy) to draw America from this backward<br /> position rather than that England and Italy<br /> should sink back into their literary barbarism?<br /> That, however, the lack of reciprocity is a matter<br /> of considerable regret there is no doubt, both in<br /> England and Italy. G. H. T.<br /> 11.<br /> &quot;Our international copyright law, as it applies<br /> to Italy, is declared by L&#039;Assoeiazione Tipigrafico-<br /> Libraria Italiana in a memorial to the Italian<br /> Government to be an extremely one-sided affair.<br /> It puts American authors who simply copyright<br /> their works here on a footing as to protection<br /> with Italian authors in Italy, no further action<br /> being required to secure all the rights the Italian<br /> enjoys. On the other hand, an Italian author<br /> who desires American protection for his work<br /> must print the work here, from American type,<br /> and publish it simultaneously with publication in<br /> Italy. He is thus at great expense. But to get<br /> advantage of the American market he must first<br /> have his book translated, another addition to his<br /> outlay. Few Italian authors can afford the time,<br /> trouble, and money, and hence the market is<br /> practically abandoned by them. Since the writ-<br /> ings of D&#039;Annunzio, De Amicis and others have<br /> begun to sell here, this amounts to a real griev-<br /> ance. Italian music is taken bodily. The peti-<br /> tioners beg for some effort to be made on their<br /> behalf, or some retaliatory measure to be taken.<br /> Better, they think, to abandon the copyright field<br /> altogether than submit to this one-sided law. A<br /> common-sense view would be to urge an amend-<br /> ment whereby copyright might be secured by<br /> registration, even though subsequent publication<br /> here was arranged for as the law at present<br /> stands. This copyright by registration and the<br /> depositing of two copies of the original foreign<br /> edition with the Librarian of Congress might be<br /> limited as to time. It should hold good for a<br /> year at least to give the foreign author a chance<br /> to get out his American edition.&quot;—New York<br /> Criterion. _<br /> in.—A Curious Point.<br /> A certain author published a book in America,<br /> and the American publisher, desirous of securing<br /> the English market, offered to an English pub-<br /> lisher to sell him 350 copies in sheets. The<br /> English publisher purchased these, and in two or<br /> three months sold the whole edition. After this<br /> edition was sold, whenever further orders came<br /> in he applied to the American publisher for further<br /> copies of the work. When the work had been<br /> on the market for a little over a year, the<br /> American publisher made arrangements for a<br /> second edition, and desiring again to place this<br /> new edition on the English market, he asked the<br /> author to arrange for the sale of 350 copies<br /> to an English publisher on the same terms as<br /> before. The author thereupon went to the pub-<br /> lisher who had sold the former instalment of<br /> books, and offered him 350 copies. Thereupon,<br /> the publisher replied that he was entitled to the<br /> second edition in England; that, in short, &quot; he<br /> considered the market in England was still his&quot;<br /> and that he could not purchase as many as 350<br /> copies. The author pointed out that there was<br /> no contract existing—that he was merely selling<br /> the books, and that if he did not care to take the<br /> 350 copies he was going to take the offer else-<br /> where.<br /> It should be pointed out that the publisher had<br /> none of the old edition in stock, so that it was<br /> straining the interpretation unduly to maintain<br /> that the &quot;English market was his still.&quot; He<br /> acknowledged that he had done well out of the<br /> former sales, but he stated that he considered the<br /> publishers were not entitled by the &quot;custom of<br /> the trade&quot; to take the book elsewhere if he<br /> refused to buy the copies tendered himself. He<br /> further maintained that it was too soon to bring<br /> out another edition. Upon the author pressing<br /> the point the publisher refused definitely to pur-<br /> chase, and said that if the offer was rnade. to any<br /> other publisher, he would write to the American<br /> house and also to the English publisher, and do<br /> his best to interfere with the sales.<br /> Under these circumstances the only thing for<br /> the author to do appears to be to take a bold<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 248 (#260) ############################################<br /> <br /> 248<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> front, offer his book to another house, an 1<br /> inform the publisher that if he attempts to inter-<br /> fere he will hold him responsible. It seems<br /> impossible that any publisher who carries on his<br /> business on these lines should succeed in the long<br /> run.<br /> Assuming all the facts are as stated, the<br /> attitude taken up by the publisher seems quite<br /> unjustifiable. He declines to take the books<br /> himself, and declares his intention of doing his<br /> best to prevent another publisher taking it—in<br /> short, he virtually attempts to boycott the book.<br /> IV.—Risk.<br /> On the question of risk, a writer of many years&#039;<br /> experience sends the following :—<br /> &quot;In the old three-volume days I asked a<br /> ] ublisher once how many copies of a novel<br /> his firm could dispose of by their name alone,<br /> without regard to the literary value of a book.<br /> He told me 250 copies. Now, as the libraries<br /> gave about 13s. 6d. a copy, this means £ib$.<br /> An edition of 500 copies of a three-volume novel<br /> of average length would not cost more than .£134<br /> (&#039;Cost of Production,&#039; p. 15), allowing ,£20 for<br /> advertising. This amount was seldom expended<br /> for advertising a book whose run was over in a<br /> season and which was only bought by the libraries.<br /> £0 that the firm, on their own showing, never<br /> incurred any risk at all in the production of a<br /> three-volume novel.<br /> &quot;I extended my research into the question of<br /> risk. I asked a publisher who had a series of 2s.<br /> novels the same question—how many the firm<br /> could dispose of by their name alone? He replied:<br /> 2000. The cost of producing such a book, for<br /> an edition of 2000—as given in the &#039;Cost of<br /> Production,&#039; p. 37—would be, for a book of about<br /> 70,000 words, and allowii g for paper covers<br /> instead of cloth, no more than My$. Now, the<br /> sale of 2000 copies would produce about ,£115.<br /> Where is the risk?<br /> &quot;We must remember that there are some<br /> books which, even when produced by firms of a fair<br /> selling power, cannot be said to bear 110 risk. But<br /> this is in general very small, and covered by a<br /> very few pounds in ordinary oases.&quot;<br /> V.—Literary Journals and Advertisements.<br /> Our editor, in the March number of The<br /> Author, dealing with the attitude of one or two<br /> newspapers which are admitted (by themselves)<br /> to be &quot;leading literary journals,&quot; is curious to<br /> know whether literature really means advertise-<br /> ments. I present him with an anecdote which<br /> may, I trust, lighten in a measure his perplexity.<br /> Some years ago a publisher, after due search in<br /> the coluinus of newspapers for what was likely to<br /> interest himself, took upon him to write a letter<br /> to a eeitain literary journal. He declared that he<br /> had repeatedly sent books to the journal in ques-<br /> tion, but he &quot;noticed&quot; that not one of the<br /> volumes 1 bus forwarded had been reviewed. The<br /> retort to this complaint was a neat one. It was<br /> admitted that the volumes for review had been<br /> received, but the literary journal &quot;noticed&quot; in<br /> its turn that the publisher did not advertise in its<br /> pages. If the publisher had had a proper regard<br /> for the dignity (and emoluments) of &quot;leading<br /> literary journals,&quot; he would have been put to<br /> confusion, and have complied in silence with the<br /> demand for bakhshish thus delicately hinted at.<br /> But he was a hardened man. He sent the corre-<br /> spondence to the Pall Mall Gazette, and it<br /> aiforded much entertainment to the readers of<br /> that newspaper.<br /> It cannot be too strenuously maintained that<br /> there are certain literary journals which are practi-<br /> cally in the pay and at the mercy of publishers<br /> who advertise in them. Their interviews and scraps<br /> of gossip are again and again coloured with<br /> malignant allusions to the dreaded and hated<br /> Authors&#039; Society; their most elaborate and flatter-<br /> ing reviews are devoted to the productions of<br /> those publishing firms which advertise indefatig-<br /> ably in their columns, which clamorously shut the<br /> door against that unspeakable intruder the lite-<br /> rary agent, and which prefer to deal with the<br /> author &quot; as between man and man.&quot;<br /> The one remedy for this condition of things<br /> has In en suggested by our editor himself. The<br /> author should claim by agreement a voice in the<br /> distribution of advertisements and in the placing<br /> of copies for review. The great and independent<br /> daily and weekly journals, which study many&#039;<br /> interests apart from literature, ought to have far<br /> and away the first consideration. Those journals<br /> provide reviews written with all the ability, and<br /> with none of the airs of authority, of the &quot; leading<br /> literary&quot; organs. Publishers&#039;announcements are<br /> no despicable item in the accounts of these widely-<br /> circulated papers; but they are not absolutely in-<br /> dispensable. While these journals might live in<br /> spite of publishers, there can be no question of<br /> the fact that publishers could not live without<br /> such extensively read newspapers. The author&#039;s<br /> independence would be increased, and the only<br /> sufferers would be those literary journals which<br /> have become degraded to the level of sordid<br /> dependants on the publishing trade.<br /> Scribbler.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 249 (#261) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 249<br /> VI.—Authors&#039; Corrections.<br /> With regard to the Editor&#039;s note on page 223<br /> of The Author of March 1, could yon publish in<br /> your paper for the benefit of members the views<br /> of the Committee on this subject. especially: 1.<br /> What should be included by publishers in their<br /> charges against a book as author&#039;s corrections?<br /> 2. At what rate should these be charged? 3.<br /> How is an author to check this?<br /> A New Member.<br /> [The best answer I can give on the subject is to<br /> quote the passage on &quot; Corrections,&quot; given to me<br /> by a printer whom I consulted in order to get<br /> trustworthy information and advice for &quot; The Pen<br /> and the Book &quot; (see p. 150).<br /> The meaning of Corrections is this: They arc<br /> charged at the rate of a shilling an hour, or, in<br /> some cases, fifteenpence, for the work of each<br /> printer employed.<br /> Now, it is extremely difficult to say how many<br /> words a compositor can alter in a given time. If<br /> the author corrects so as to &quot;overrun,&quot; i.e., to<br /> alter the line and carry a part of it into the next<br /> and following lines, he may cause an alteration of<br /> the whole page, line by line, down to the end of<br /> the paragraph, and even beyond it. If he does<br /> this, he very materially alters the cost of Correc-<br /> tion. It is thus most difficult to check the charge<br /> for Correction. The only method which will<br /> enable the author to check approximately this<br /> item, is for hira to preserve carefully the first<br /> proofs, with his Corrections upon them, and to<br /> insist upon receiving them back with his revise.<br /> In other words, correct as little as you can: do<br /> not &quot;overrun&quot; if you can possibly help it: get<br /> your revise back again: and remember that only<br /> q, few words, three or four—opinions vary con-<br /> „U -rably as to the number—may be changed in a<br /> .A flute: you can then, if there is no over-running,<br /> .^&#039;.,-ke a tolerable guess at the correctness of the<br /> charge. In mosk. publishers&#039; agreements authors<br /> are allowed so much a sheet for Corrections: but<br /> as they are not told the connection between<br /> shillings and words, they are not much wiser,and<br /> the door is open for overcharging.—W. B.]<br /> VII. Authors, Publishers, and Booksellers.<br /> The Publishers&#039; Association has passed certain<br /> resolutions dealing with the trade prices of books.<br /> The resolutions which, of course, closely affect the<br /> property of our members, have been drawn up<br /> and submitted to the booksellers without the<br /> least reference to the creators and owners of that<br /> property. The question will be considered by<br /> the sub-committee appointed for the purpose.<br /> Their action will be reported in the next number<br /> of The Author.<br /> VIII.—Much Needed.<br /> The following letter has been published in the<br /> chief literary papers in London, owing to the<br /> action of the Society of Authors, on behalf of<br /> Mr. A. E. T. Watson. The letter practically<br /> explains the position. A series of short stories,<br /> by many authors, was published by Mr. George<br /> Redway, and the book was lettered outside, as<br /> stated in the communication—&quot; Huntingcrop<br /> Hall, A. E. T. Watson,&quot; thus conveying the<br /> impression that the work was a single story by a<br /> popular author. Mr. Watson naturally objected to<br /> this, and put the matter in the hands of the<br /> Society. After considerable negotiation, and wh?n<br /> the matter had been placed in the hands of the<br /> Society&#039;s solicitors, Mr. Redway consented to<br /> make the explanation contained in the letter.<br /> An Explanation.—To the Editor.—Sir,—I have been<br /> asked by Mr. Alfred E. T. Watson to explain that a volume<br /> of collected pieces published by me last autumn nnder the<br /> title of &quot;Huntingcrop Hall&quot; and other stories, by Alfred<br /> E. T. Watson and other sporting writers, and lettered<br /> outside &quot;Hnntingcrop Hall, A. E. T. Watson,&quot; was not pre-<br /> pared nor edited by that gentleman, and that he had<br /> nothing to do with the publication. The two stories by<br /> Mr. Watson included in the volume were republished from<br /> &#039;London Society,&quot; of 1S72, by arrangement made by me<br /> with Mr. James Hogg, the proprietor of the copyrights,<br /> and not by permission of Mr. Watson, the writer of the<br /> stories. George Redway.<br /> PARIS NOTES.<br /> THE spirit of discord appears to have invaded<br /> French literary circles during the past month.<br /> Indeed, at one moment affairs assumed such<br /> serious proportions that the recognised agitators<br /> themselves stood aghast at the prospect of<br /> fresh trouble breaking out in such an unexpected<br /> quarter as the patriotic and pacific Ligue de la<br /> Patrie Francaise. Happily, MM. Jules Leraaitre<br /> and Francois Coppee (president and honorary<br /> president of the league) retrieved their first<br /> imprudent manifestation of personal feeling so<br /> promptly that all danger of new internal com-<br /> plications was averted; though numerous mem-<br /> bers—and among them the well-known literati<br /> MM. de Heredia, Andre Theuriet, and Maurice<br /> Souriau—expressed their disapproval by with-<br /> drawing their adhesion to the league. The<br /> erudite M. Houssaye refused to follow their<br /> example. We may mention in passing that this<br /> conscientious historian is now receiving the con-<br /> gratulations of the French Press on the success<br /> of his new work, entitled &quot;Waterloo, 2e partie de<br /> 1815,&quot; ed. Perrin. In impartiality of judgment<br /> and laboriously correct phraseology, M. Hous-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 250 (#262) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> saye&#039;s work somewhat resembles that of our own<br /> Sir James Macintosh.<br /> Secondly, there is an open schism among the<br /> members of the French Academy for the first<br /> time in its history. That this august body should<br /> ever stoop to party politics or personal differences<br /> seemed as improbable as that Birnam wood should<br /> ever invade the towers of Macbeth; but the<br /> vacant seats of MM. Jules Lemaitre, Francois<br /> Coppee, Anatole France, and Jules Claretie on<br /> M. Guillaume&#039;s investiture to the vacant fauteuil<br /> of the feu Due d&#039;Aumale made all Paris aware<br /> of the &quot;rift within the lute&quot; existing in the<br /> heart of this venerable assembly. Under these<br /> circumstances M. Guillaume&#039;s oration (extremely<br /> well read by M. Brunetiere, owing to the newly-<br /> elected member being temporarily voiceless) and<br /> M. Meziere&#039;s response to the same, were matters<br /> of secondary importance, though the latter&#039;s<br /> assurance that M. Guillaume did not express him-<br /> self &quot;comme un guide Baedeker&quot; brought a<br /> quiet smile to the lips of several persons present.<br /> Apropos of the flattering allusion made to M.<br /> Guillaume&#039;s literary services, we may state that<br /> the eminent sculptor has produced a study on<br /> Michel Angelo, and several minor works, written<br /> in a sufficiently clear, straightforward manner;<br /> but, had the &quot;affaire&quot; not smoothed his elevation<br /> to his present dignity, we doubt if French litera-<br /> ture would ever have been aware of his efforts ou<br /> her behalf.<br /> Thirdly, M. Annan de Caillavet, having taken<br /> umbrage at some chance phrase in an article<br /> entitled &quot; Salons parisiens &quot; (Vieparisienne), sent<br /> two friends to the editor demanding the name of<br /> the writer of the article in question. M. Pierre<br /> Veber at once acknowledged his own responsi-<br /> bility. A meeting accordingly took place, in<br /> which the unlucky writer was disabled in the<br /> fourth round by a nasty sword-cut in the fore-<br /> arm. A few days later, the well-known dramatic<br /> author, M. Paul Gavault, had a meeting with M.<br /> Henri Marx. The cause of the quarrel has not<br /> yet transpired, but literature was again at a dis-<br /> advantage, M. Gavault receiving a deep wound in<br /> the lower jaw, which caused the surgeons in<br /> attendance to stop the combat. If these encoun-<br /> ters continue, a large number of the Parisian<br /> literati appear likely soon to figure on the<br /> disabled list.<br /> The names of no less than three Academicians<br /> adorn the theatrical posters at the present<br /> moment, namely, MM. Anatole France, Francois<br /> Coppee, and Henri Lavedan. The dramatic<br /> adaptation at the Vaudeville of M. Anatole<br /> France&#039;s well-known novel &quot;Le Lys Rouge&quot;<br /> made quite a stir in theatrical and literary<br /> circles. It is useless, however, to deny that the<br /> play does not realise the high expectations<br /> formed of its merits, and that not even its clever<br /> interpretation can prevent the dialogue from<br /> occasionally appearing too long-winded and<br /> monotonous. The same criticism is applicable to<br /> the adaptati6n of &quot; Le Coupable &quot; of M. Francois<br /> Coppee (Theatre Ambigu). Psychological and<br /> social problems are unwelcome to the majority of<br /> theatre-goers, for the gods of the higher literary<br /> cult are not the gods of the gallery. M. Henri<br /> Lavedan in his adaptation of &quot;Le Vieux<br /> Marcheur&quot; (as elsewhere) gives evidence of<br /> abundantly recognising this fact. He possesses<br /> the genuine dramatic verve, being especially good<br /> in sparkling, &quot; slangy,&quot; up-to-date dialogue; but<br /> it is a pity that the distinguished Academician<br /> should have enveloped his latest production in a<br /> frame better suited to the profligate period of<br /> the Regency than our own more enlightened agp.<br /> The Parisians cannot be accused of niggardli-<br /> ness towards their illustrious deceased ecclesiastics.<br /> The committee recently formed at Paris by<br /> Cardinal Perraud for the purpose of raising funds<br /> to erect a funeral monument to Boesuet, &quot; L&#039;Aigle<br /> de Meaux,&quot; iu the cathedral of that town, has<br /> just published its first list of donations received.<br /> The sum total already amounts to 17,000 francs;<br /> and, meanwhile, the fragrant plot of ground and<br /> ancient mill consecrated to all lovers of literature<br /> by the &quot; Lettres de Mou Moulin&quot; and other works<br /> of Alphonse Daudet, are being ignomiuiously put<br /> up for sale to be knocked down as an indifferent<br /> &quot;lot&quot; to the highest bidder. This appears at<br /> first sight to be slightly inconsistent; but a<br /> moment&#039;s reflection reminds us that such conduct<br /> is not unparalleled in the history of other<br /> nations.<br /> The representation of foreign dramas—and,<br /> more especially, the performance of M. Jean<br /> Aicard&#039;s translation of the Shakesperian &quot; Otello&quot;<br /> at the Comcdie Fran9aise—has recently given<br /> rise to a lively discussion on this subject iu the<br /> Beaux Arts section of the Chamber of Deputies.<br /> The nationalists found foreign authors out of<br /> place in the national theatres subsidised by the<br /> State, and demanded that henceforth only French<br /> operas and plays should be represented therein.<br /> To these objections M. Leygues roundly re-<br /> sponded that, if such were the case, only works<br /> of the French school ought to be admitted to<br /> the Louvre, since subsidised theatres were<br /> nothing less than national museums, and that<br /> Shakespeare was assuredly in his right place at<br /> the Comcdie Fran^aise or Odcon, since in raising<br /> a statue in his honour the Town of Paris ha 1<br /> herself rendered homage to his genius. He<br /> added that subsidised theatres were especially-<br /> consecrated to &quot;la pensee humaine,&quot; which was<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 251 (#263) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> cosmopolite; and spiritedly demanded if the<br /> nationalists desired to exclude Correggio, Raphael,<br /> and Titian from the Louvre? He likewise<br /> pointed out that more dramatic French authors<br /> were represented in foreign countries than<br /> foreign dramatic authors were represented in<br /> France, and further continued — &quot;Let us<br /> admire the beautiful wherever it may be<br /> found; do not let us proscribe genius under<br /> the pretext that it is not French. N&#039;etablissons<br /> pas de barriere-douaniere contre la pensee!&quot;<br /> This liberal and sensible speech was deservedly<br /> applauded, and thus our great poet has received<br /> his letters of naturalisation from the countrymen<br /> of Moliere, Racine, and Corneille.<br /> The Daudet family are skilled and untiring<br /> writers. &quot;Sebastian Gouves&quot; (ed. Fasquelle) is<br /> the title of M. Leon Daudet&#039;s new novel, but not<br /> having been favoured with a copy, we are unable<br /> to vouch for its merits. It is reported to repre-<br /> sent the strife perpetually waging between passion<br /> and interest, the social factors and the individual.<br /> At the present moment this hard-working author<br /> is busily engaged in supervising the editing of<br /> &quot;Notes sur la Vie&quot; {Revue de Paris), a series of<br /> casual notes in diary form found among the<br /> papers of the late Alphonse Daudet; also &quot;Le<br /> Valet de ferme&quot; (e&quot;d. Dentu), a collection of short<br /> tales by the same illustrious author, to which M.<br /> Leon Daudet is adding a preface; while M.<br /> Ernest Daudet is occupied in finishing a stirring<br /> historical romance of the fifteenth century,<br /> entitled &quot; Deux Coeques,&quot; which will shortly be<br /> given to the public.<br /> Our obituary list for the past month embraces<br /> the names of three men whose fame was<br /> essentially Parisian: (i) Charles-Louis-Etienne<br /> Truinet, better known as Charles Nuitter, archivist<br /> of the Opéra, was the author of numerous vaude-<br /> villes, and among them, the famous &quot;Tasse de<br /> the&quot;; but he is chiefly known as a librettist<br /> and the translator of &quot;Tannhauser,&quot; &quot;Rienzi,&quot;<br /> and &quot; Lohengrin.&quot; He collaborated with Offen-<br /> bach in &quot;Les Bavards,&quot; &#039;* Vert-Vert,&quot; and<br /> &quot;La Princesse de Tre&quot;bizonde &quot;; with Sardou<br /> in Guiraud&#039;s &quot;Piccolino&quot;; with Locle in<br /> Verdi&#039;s &quot;Aida&quot;; and with Beaumont, Delibes,<br /> and Lalo on other occasions. He was<br /> seventy-one years of age, and carried out so<br /> faithfully his chosen motto of &#039;* Cache ta vie,&quot;<br /> that, at his death, not even his intimate asso-<br /> ciates knew if any of his family were still in<br /> existence. (2) Fernand Xau, founder and editor<br /> of Le Journal, died prematurely at Cannes, after<br /> a long and painful illness, a victim to overwork.<br /> Once, on being reproached for not taking the<br /> repose he needed, &quot;I belong,&quot; he answered gaily,<br /> &quot;to the race of horses who die when they stop<br /> vol. IX.<br /> short.&quot; He possessed all the qualities requisite<br /> to a successfulfin-de-siicle editor; and his smart<br /> repartees, shrewd judgment, and brilliant con-<br /> versational powers, united with great kindness<br /> of heart and journalistic talent of no mean order,<br /> make his loss sincerely regretted by a wide circle of<br /> friends and acquaintances. (3) The sudden death<br /> of Albert Bataille, one of the ablest journalists on<br /> the Figaro staff, has been still more widely<br /> deplored. The numerous foreign and native<br /> journalistic and literary associations of which he<br /> was an active member were unanimous in their<br /> expressions of esteem and regret. Speaking in<br /> the name of the foreign journalists at Paris,<br /> M. Janzon, editor of the Stockholms Dagblad,<br /> and member of the Central committee of the<br /> Press Association, emphatically declared: &quot;H<br /> n&#039;y a pas un journalist* étranger qui ait connu<br /> Bataille sans le respecter et l&#039;aimer.&quot; But<br /> perhaps the highest tribute paid to the dead<br /> man&#039;s sterling worth was that conveyed in the<br /> closing phrases of the funeral oration pronounced<br /> by M. de Rodays: &quot;Mais il faut surtout le louer,<br /> e&quot;tant une force, d&#039;avoir e&quot;te une conscience.<br /> Bataille n&#039;a jamais ecrit un mot qui&#039;l ne pensat<br /> pas. ... II a touche- a tout . . . et il<br /> n&#039;a jamais 6ti injuste pour personne. C&#039;est<br /> l&#039;honneur de sa vie de n&#039;avoir jamais cede* a une<br /> pression ou subi l&#039;influence d&#039;un mauvais courant<br /> d&#039;opinion.&quot;<br /> M. Pierre Loti&#039;s Eastern trip is indefinitely<br /> postponed, owing to his re-instatement on the<br /> active service list of the French Navy. He is<br /> now engaged on a work whose plot is laid in the<br /> He de Paques. This tiny Oceanic island was dis-<br /> covered by Davis in 1686, and explored by Rogge-<br /> ween on &quot;Le jour de Paques, 1722.&quot; M. Loti<br /> visited this isle as a midshipman twenty-four<br /> years ago, and was much surprised to find it<br /> peopled by a handsome and intelligent white race.<br /> He is assisted in his present work by the notes<br /> taken on that occasion.<br /> M. Edouard Rod, whose name is well known in<br /> French literary circles, has just embarked for<br /> New York. He is expected to be absent for<br /> three months, his intention being to give a series<br /> of lectures in the American universities on French<br /> dramatic poetry, including the works of Jean<br /> Jacques, Rousseau, &amp;c. On his return he will<br /> probably give the public the reflections induced<br /> by his American tour.<br /> The era of cheap modern literature in superior<br /> type and binding is being inaugurated here by<br /> MM. Jules Rouff and Co., who, relying on the<br /> popularity of Victor Hugo&#039;s works, have pur-<br /> chased from his heirs the right of publishing a<br /> complete collection of their famous relative&#039;s<br /> writings at the low rate of twenty-five centimes<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 252 (#264) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> per volume. The statue of the great French<br /> master, intrusted to the sculptor Barrias, will be<br /> finished in July. The project of temporarily<br /> placing the plaster cast on the &quot; rond point&quot; of<br /> the Avenue Victor Hugo has been abandoned,<br /> and it is now definitely decided that the Hugo<br /> monument is to be placed when finished in a<br /> central position in the Champs Elysces palace<br /> ready for the great Exhibition of 1900.<br /> Amongthe publications of the month may be men-<br /> tioned &quot; La Force,&quot; by M. Paul Adam, one of the<br /> most graphic and interestingmartialworkswe have<br /> had the pleasure of reading for a long time; &quot; Le<br /> Massacre des Amazones,&quot; by M. Han Ryner (chez<br /> Chaumel), a critical study of 200 contemporary<br /> &quot;bas bleus,&quot; among whom are included Mmes.<br /> Adam, Sarah Bernhardt, Alphonse Daudet, Tola<br /> Dorian, Judith Gautier, &quot; Gyp,&quot; Jean Bertheroy,<br /> the Duchess d&#039;Uzes, &amp;c.; &quot;Le Quartier Latin,&quot;<br /> by MM. Georges Renault and Gustave Le Rouge<br /> (chez Flammarion), a clever and instructive<br /> history of the old and new Latin quarter; &quot;Le<br /> Rachat de la Femme,&quot; by Pierre Sales (chez<br /> Flammarion), forming a conclusion to his sensa-<br /> tional &quot; Honneur du Mari,&quot; of which 10,000 copies<br /> were sold at its first publication; &quot;L&#039;Anneau<br /> d&#039;Amethyste,&quot; by Anatole France, a novel which<br /> maintains the high literary level of its prede-<br /> cessors; &quot;Josephine, Imperatrice et Reine,&quot; by<br /> the Bonapartist biographer, M. Frédcric Masson<br /> (chez Ollendorf), being a sequel to his interesting<br /> &quot;Josephine Beauharnais&quot;; &quot;Un Amateur d&#039;umes&quot;<br /> (chez Fasquell), a charming Spanish study by<br /> M. Barres; and the second volume of the famous<br /> Gourgaud Memoirs, which contains much new<br /> and interesting matter relative to the great<br /> Napoleon, especially in regard to his private<br /> sentiments and shrewd appreciation of his two<br /> consorts. Darracotte Dene.<br /> FROM THE AMERICAN PAPERS.<br /> AMERICAN newspaper methods are, or have<br /> been, so much a byword in this country<br /> that it is of peculiar interest to hear the<br /> views of themselves entertained by American<br /> newspaper men. An address delivered the other<br /> day by Mr. St. Clair McKelway, editor of the<br /> Broohlyn Eagle, affords this opportunity. The<br /> occasion was the annual banquet of the American<br /> Newspaper Publishers&#039; Association at the<br /> Waldorf-Astoria, when Mr. Stephen O&#039;Meara,<br /> editor of the Boston Journal, presided over a com-<br /> pany of 200. The first speaker of the evening<br /> was Congressman B. Mahany, of Buffalo, who<br /> declared that there were more and better news-<br /> papers in New York State to-day than existed in<br /> the whole world half a century ago. Lieutenant-<br /> Governor Timothy L. Woodruff, who was the<br /> next speaker, addressed himself to the subject of<br /> &quot;Public Men and their Relations to the Press.&quot;<br /> An honest public servant, he said, need fear<br /> neither jails nor newspapers; a dishonest public<br /> servant had just cause to fear both. Newspaper<br /> men constituted an impregnable phalanx of<br /> advancement and civilisation. Mr. St. Clair<br /> McKelway followed with a sj)eech on &quot;The<br /> Press in its Relations to Public Men.&quot; The<br /> &quot;relations,&quot; he said, were improving. Public<br /> men were finding that the rowdy Press<br /> could do them no harm, and the decent<br /> Press was finding that rowdy public men could<br /> do them neither harm nor good. &quot;There are<br /> rowdy public men and there are rowdy news-<br /> papers,&quot; said the speaker. &quot;They have a natural<br /> affinity for one another. The other kind of<br /> public men and the other kind of newspapers are<br /> letting that first sort alone. A line of cleavage<br /> in every community is being drawn between<br /> decent pubbc men and rowdy public men, and<br /> between decent newspapers and rowdy newspapers.<br /> Public men worthy of the name wish to benefit<br /> the city, State, or nation, and believe that the<br /> ideas of their party are likely to do it. Public<br /> journals have the same wish and the same belief.&quot;<br /> Mr. McKelway&#039;s denunciation of the unworthy<br /> section of the American Press was delivered in<br /> unstinted terms, and, as coming from one of the<br /> leading editors in the United States, deserves to<br /> be noted. Witness the following extract from<br /> his speech: &quot;The public journal,&quot; he declared,<br /> &quot;that subsists or exists for public plunder is a<br /> mendicant, a sycophant, and a compulsory<br /> coward. Only those who compel Press considera-<br /> tion by deserving it, either by character or ability,<br /> or both, are worthy of consideration as public<br /> men. Only those newspapers that make and<br /> keep a solvency in themselves and by themselves<br /> are worthy of consideration as public journals.<br /> The Government may be an advertiser in them<br /> like any other customer that has matters to<br /> make known, but the renting of business space<br /> should carry with it no mortgage on con-<br /> science or on brain. There may be a dispute<br /> over the permanence or power of the indepen-<br /> dent newspaper. I am too committed to the<br /> principle to indulge the reflected egotism of<br /> advocating it here. But there can hardly be a<br /> doubt about the lamentable and even pitiable<br /> plight of the dependent newspaper. It must<br /> mask the fact of slavery behind the pretence of<br /> authority. It must conceal the condition of<br /> beggarhood behind the front of oraclehood. It<br /> is of all things the most unfortunate. A man<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 253 (#265) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR:<br /> might conceivably sell his manual labour even<br /> for life to a heartless creditor, or deliver his heir-<br /> looms to an inforcing robber, or buy his peace<br /> from a soulless blackmailer, but that he should<br /> contract out his conscience and his brain under<br /> circumstances which make him infidel to honour,<br /> vacant of real influence, and barren of moral self-<br /> respect, should be unthinkable. For those whose<br /> personal or domestic necessities lead them to<br /> think that they must do that charity is taxed to<br /> the extreme. Towards those who do it for love of<br /> the fact of pelf or of the fiction of power,<br /> credulity is paralysed and indignation fatigued.&quot;<br /> M. Edouard Rod is now making his first visit<br /> to the United States, in order to deliver a series<br /> of lectures in French at the principal universities<br /> and colleges. These yearly lectures by distin-<br /> guished French literary men were started under<br /> the auspices of the Cercle Francais of Harvard<br /> two years ago, when M. Ferdinand Brunetiere<br /> dealt with the French novel. Last year M. Rene<br /> Doumic took up the History of French roman-<br /> ticism. M. Paul Bourget will probably be heard<br /> next year. M. Rod is treating of the History<br /> of French Dramatic Poetry. Questioned by the<br /> New York Times concerning his lectures, he<br /> made some interesting remarks on French litera-<br /> ture. &quot;Among the dramatic poets of the past,&quot;<br /> said M. Rod, &quot;my preference is for Racine.<br /> Racinean tragedy, with the drama of Shakes-<br /> peare, appears to me to be the most elevated<br /> form of art that dramatic poetry has produced.<br /> Racine&#039;s plays differ greatly from those of<br /> Shakespeare. I do not consider them inferior,<br /> but they represent a form of art that is essen-<br /> tially French. Foreigners often accuse us of not<br /> understanding them. Yet I think that at the<br /> present time Shakespearean drama is better<br /> understood in France than Racinean tragedy is<br /> outside of France. There is one thing about<br /> Shakespeare that has impressed me forcibly. A<br /> few months ago I was in London, and went to see<br /> &#039;Julius Caesar&#039; — at Her Majesty&#039;s Theatre, I<br /> think. I could not but marvel at the prodigious<br /> knowledge of the democracy shown by Shake-<br /> speare, who nevertheless did not live in a<br /> democratic epoch. To come to modern times,<br /> within the past decade the foreign authors who<br /> have exercised the most influence upon French<br /> literature are, of course, Ibsen and Tolstoi, but<br /> what the ultimate effect of this influence will be<br /> it is impossible to conjecture. The most striking<br /> characteristic of our literature of the present time<br /> is its heterogeneity, if I may be pardoned for<br /> using such a barbarous word. There have been<br /> epochs when there was a certain unity in literary<br /> production and thought—at least, that is the<br /> impression we receive at a distance—but to-day we<br /> see around us the most diverse elements. It has<br /> been complained that Rostand&#039;s &#039;Cyrano de<br /> Bergerac&#039; has shown unmistakably, by the<br /> universal admiration it has evoked and the<br /> unprecedented enthusiasm with which it has been<br /> received, that the tendencies of the times are<br /> towards a return to the romantic school.<br /> Evidently there is a current of romanticism; yet<br /> the current of realism is still strong, and there is<br /> another very pronounced current which seems to<br /> me to be a very powerful one but which it is<br /> difficult to define by a more precise word than<br /> that of idealism, which does not express much.<br /> JNb, I cannot venture to say whether or not any<br /> modern French writer exercises a decisive influ-<br /> ence upon our literature. That is not for me, but<br /> for posterity to judge.&quot; M. Rod does not speak<br /> English, though he can read it.<br /> The following editorial comment recently<br /> appeared in the New York World:<br /> There would seem to be something wrong abont the<br /> traditional belief that authors are poor and improvident<br /> people, if the history and experience of the Authors&#039; Club<br /> in this city is of any significance.<br /> The club was organised in 1882, and it has always<br /> consisted of less than 150 members, all authors. At first<br /> it had no home and no means with which to rent one. Now<br /> it has a luxurious abiding-place, a fine library and all the<br /> adjuncts of comfort.<br /> And while most of the clubs composed of prosperous<br /> business men are sorely harassed by debt, the Authors&#039; Club<br /> owes nobody a oent. and has a comfortable and yearly<br /> increasing bank account.<br /> While it was still poor it undertook to make and sell a<br /> costly book of unique character. There were to be 250<br /> copies, each to be sold at 100 dollars. The publishers all<br /> ridiculed the idea, and with solioitous sympathy predicted<br /> disastrous failure, not as probable but as certain. But the<br /> authors made the book and marketed it so well that only a<br /> few oopies remain for belated buyers.<br /> Either the tradition is at fault or the authors have<br /> been learning thrift and shrewdness by their dealings with<br /> publishers.<br /> A FEW NOTES FROM AUSTRALIA.<br /> PROSPERITY is slowly but surely returning<br /> to Australia, and the direful crisis of 1893<br /> is fading to some extent from the minds<br /> of men. Its lesson has not been forgotten, how-<br /> ever, and speculation and mild credits are not<br /> nearly so much in evidence as was the case in the<br /> ante-boom days.<br /> One result of the improvement is that Australia<br /> is again becoming a good market for English<br /> books and periodicals, which pour into the country<br /> in an enormous stream. Last year (1898) the<br /> single colony of New South Wales imported books<br /> and stationery to the value of .£581,974, and<br /> though no doubt stationery was the larger item,<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 254 (#266) ############################################<br /> <br /> 254<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> yet the importation of books and periodicals must<br /> have been very large.<br /> The cheap English magazine rages with con-<br /> siderable virulence here, and local publications<br /> feel the competition somewhat, but have to suffer<br /> without much prospect of alleviation, as &#039;* pro-<br /> tection&quot; against the British author and publisher<br /> would not be entertained, in New South Wales<br /> at all events, which, under the cegis of Mr. Reid,<br /> has become very pronouncedly free - trade in<br /> policy.<br /> The absence of purely literary periodicals has<br /> no doubt seriously checked the development of<br /> Australian literary effort, but of late years a con- •<br /> siderable number of young writers have come<br /> into notice, chiefly through the Bulletin, a paper<br /> which, whatever its faults, and they are numerous<br /> enough, has done more to encourage Australian<br /> literary talent than any other local publication.<br /> Of these younger writers the best known are Mr.<br /> A. B. Paterson, Mr. Henry Lawson, Mr. Ogilvie,<br /> and Mr. Victor Daly. Almost all are verse<br /> writers, and have published numerous ballads,<br /> but they also write prose.and Mr. Paterson has<br /> recently published a novel. As a rule, the<br /> Australian writer betakes him to England, and<br /> as examples might be quoted Mr. B. J. Farjeon,<br /> Mr. Fergus Hume, Mr. H. B. Marriott Watson,<br /> Mr. Louis Becke, and other writers; but there are<br /> some who remain with us, such as Mr. Browne<br /> (Kolf Boldrewood), Mrs. Cross (Ada Cambridge),<br /> and Mrs. H. R. Curlewis (Ethel Turner). There<br /> are worse countries to live in than Australia,<br /> with its genial climate, its free life, and its<br /> endless possibilities in the way of riding, driving,<br /> bicycling, boating, &lt;fec. Of course, I refer to the<br /> older colonies, not to newly-discovered goldfields<br /> or pastoral sections.<br /> Some readers of The Author may be interested<br /> in &quot;spooks,&quot; and such will be glad to hear<br /> that a road near the present writer&#039;s place of<br /> residence is haunted by a remarkable &quot;spook,&quot;<br /> which takes the form of a dog. At about 1<br /> 1<br /> o&#039;clock p.m. on Aug. 12, the dog appears near a<br /> little bridge or culvert on what is known as the<br /> Willoughby road, and runs in front of or round<br /> anyone who happens to be passing that way.<br /> Hundreds of people are said to have seen the dog,<br /> and many have thrown stones at it, but the<br /> missiles have passed completely through the<br /> figure without affecting it in the least. When<br /> matches are lit it disappears, but reappears the<br /> moment the light goes out. I cross-questioned<br /> a girl who had seen the dog, and she scouted<br /> the idea that it was imaginary, and stated<br /> that hundreds of people had seen it and that<br /> she herself had been accompanied by several<br /> persons, to all of whom it was visible. I have<br /> not seen the dog myself, and have an open mind<br /> on the subject, and give the tale as I heard it.<br /> For a new country, New South Wales rejoices in<br /> good many &quot; spook &quot; stories, haunted houses, and<br /> so on.<br /> Almost everyone here and many people in<br /> England know the story of &quot;Fisher&#039;s Ghost,&quot;<br /> which is supposed to be a fairly well-authenticated<br /> story. Fisher was a small farmer who was treacher-<br /> ously murdered by a man with whom he had lived<br /> as a friend. This man gave out that Fisher had<br /> gone to England, but people passing a certain<br /> fence near a creek at night began to see Fisher<br /> sitting on a rail. When approached, the figure<br /> glided off in the direction of the creek. Investi-<br /> gations were made; blood was found on the<br /> fence, and Fisher&#039;s body in a hole on the bank of<br /> the creek. The suspected man was arrested and<br /> hanged. There is no doubt whatever of the<br /> murder, trial, and execution, and the supernatural<br /> part is believed by many.<br /> Justin C. MacCartie.<br /> Bridge-street, Sydney,<br /> Jan. 17.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> THE following resolution has been forwarded<br /> to me from the secretary of the Authors&#039;<br /> Club. It was passed unanimously at the<br /> last meeting of the Committee of the Club with a<br /> view of assisting those members of the Society<br /> who happen to be up in town for the dinner of<br /> the Society, and to making their stay in town as<br /> pleasant as possible:<br /> &quot;That gentlemen living in the country who are<br /> members of the Authors&#039; Society may be elected<br /> honorary members of the Authors&#039; Club for the<br /> week May 1st to 6th upon the personal introduc-<br /> tion of a member of the Club.&quot;<br /> The annual report of the Boyal Literary Fund<br /> for the year 1898 will be found in another column.<br /> Two or three points are suggested by the report.<br /> The first is that the invested funds of the asso-<br /> ciation now amount to nearly .£60,000: that the<br /> income is about .£4000: that the amount given in<br /> relief of authors in distress was .£1900: and that<br /> the total number of recipients was no more than<br /> twenty-seven. Of these, fourteen were men, who<br /> received an average grant of .£61 each, and thir-<br /> teen were women, of whom eight were authors,<br /> with an average grant of .£51: four were widows,<br /> with an average grant of .£150: and one, an<br /> orphan, who received .£40.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 255 (#267) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 255<br /> This represents the year&#039;s work of a most useful<br /> and beneficent charity. One gentleman at the<br /> meeting objected to the investment of more<br /> money, on the ground that there must surely be<br /> more than twenty-seven persons a year for whom<br /> the fund was intended. The speaker represented<br /> the average and common view of literature as a<br /> profession. That is to say, he regards it as a<br /> beggarly and most precarious profession. Now,<br /> I have been on the council of the Royal Literary<br /> Fund. Their meetings are most sacred and<br /> private and confidential. But I do not think that<br /> I am revealing secrets when I say that I never<br /> remember a single deserving case which was<br /> turned away for want of funds. On the contrary,<br /> the council always took a lenient view of the case,<br /> and a generous view of the literary position of the<br /> applicant. And I do not believe that, outside the<br /> twenty-seven recipients in last year&#039;s lists, there<br /> was a single case of distress which presented itself,<br /> or which might have presented itself. In other<br /> words, there are now thousands who live by the<br /> pen: the position of this multitude is as assured<br /> as that of any other profession. A man may break<br /> down in health, but if he does not, and is a good<br /> man and worthy of a place in the profession of<br /> letters, he may reckon upon success with much<br /> greater certainty than if he was a solicitor or a<br /> medical practitioner.<br /> I am, therefore, of opinion that it is quite<br /> time to abandon the annual appeal to the public<br /> for assistance for the starving litterateur. There<br /> will always be cases of distress and hardship, but<br /> there is no longer any necessity for the yearly<br /> dinner and the yearly speech of the chairman in<br /> aid of a charity which is represented as requiring<br /> more funds, and still more funds, as if the appli-<br /> cants were increasing in number instead of being<br /> a mere remnant, and as if the profession was still<br /> what it was sixty and a hundred years ago,<br /> starveling and dependent. In other words, the<br /> Fund has as much money as it wants: it need not<br /> make any more appeals or ask for any more<br /> invested funds; while to appeal to the public<br /> every year on behalf of the literary profession<br /> has not only ceased to be necessary but has<br /> actually become degrading. With this view of<br /> the case, I shall not feel myself in future called to<br /> give anything more to an institution which is<br /> sufficiently equipped for its excellent work, and I<br /> shall never again sit at a dinner which represents<br /> a condition of things no longer existing.<br /> The various experiments in the prices which<br /> publishers are now trying, are watched with<br /> interest by Americans. The following paragraph,<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> cut out of the New York Criterion, shows what<br /> some of them think. It is not quite the case<br /> that the six-shilling novel is ousted from the<br /> railway stall by its sixpenny rival: it is, however,<br /> quite true that the six-shilling volume is greatly<br /> damaged by the sixpenny. I believe that one<br /> publisher is going to try the experiment of pro-<br /> ducing books at two prices—a low and a high<br /> price. I can assure him that no one, not even a<br /> millionaire, will pay more than he is obliged to<br /> pay for anything, especially for &quot;something to<br /> read,&quot; which is what most people want on a<br /> journey. I watched a stall the other day. There<br /> were offered stories at sixpence—or was it a<br /> shilling?—and the same stories at a penny.<br /> People bought them. Everyone laid down his<br /> penny and took the cheaper book:<br /> &quot;The ephemeral character of the great bulk of current<br /> notion is strikingly illustrated by the snocess obtained in<br /> London by the sixpenny reprints of recent novels and the<br /> melancholy effect which their publication is having on the<br /> sale of the six-shilling novels. On the railway bookstalls<br /> the sixpenny paper-cover has practioally ousted the more<br /> pretentious volume, and when the promised new novels in<br /> sixpenny and shilling volumes come the chances sf the high-<br /> priced, well-bound novels are not of the brightest. The<br /> publio is realising that six shillings is a high price to pay for<br /> merely reading a book; for certainly most books of recent<br /> notion are of little value after being read once; they are<br /> not worth preserving on library shelves. Just as its pre-<br /> decessor, the three-decker, went, unwept and unsung, so<br /> will go the six-shilling book, and cheap editions, with a<br /> limited number bound for library purposes, will prevail.<br /> Neither author nor publisher has nrach to fear by this<br /> prospect, as there is no reason why good, or even indifferent,<br /> novels should not supplant the &#039;snipped&#039; and &#039;rag-bag&#039;<br /> papers that now flood the market.&quot;<br /> In the same paper I find a note on the<br /> Society and my book. It was not, of course, an<br /> &quot;onslaught on the publishers.&quot; It simply stated<br /> what has been already stated over and over again,<br /> that &quot; many publishers&quot; are dishonest in certain<br /> ways that are expressly mentioned and, according<br /> to my view, are ways of dishonesty. These views,<br /> however, seem to be shared by everybody who<br /> takes the trouble to read them.<br /> Sir Walter Besant&#039;s &quot;Pen and the Book &quot; onslaught on<br /> the publishers has received opportune support from the<br /> annual report of the Authors&#039; Society just published. In<br /> their efforts for the protection of literary property the<br /> Authors&#039; solicitors dealt with 11o oases during 1898. Of<br /> these, twenty-eight referred to manuscripts which editors or<br /> publishers had not returned; in fifty oases money was<br /> claimed by authors from publishers; and there were twenty-<br /> three cases of dealings between writer and publisher in<br /> which the latter did not produce proper accounts of the<br /> transactions. The Society succeeded in recovering for their<br /> owners more than half of the detained manusoripts, over<br /> four-fifths of the money claimed, and in two oases out of<br /> three compelled the publishers to render satisfactory<br /> acoonnts. Ab practically every well-known English writer<br /> is now a member of the Sooiety of Authors, it has made<br /> Jt E<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 256 (#268) ############################################<br /> <br /> 256<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> itaelf a decided factor in the perpetual strife between the<br /> wolf and the lamb—as Sir Walter would put it. The<br /> lamb, however, some publishers think, is growing up into a<br /> very sturdy ram, capable of taking good care of itself.<br /> I have been taken to task for calling the<br /> practice of charging what has not been paid<br /> &quot;thieving.&quot; Well: two men embark on an<br /> enterprise the proceeds of which they have agreed<br /> to share in certain proportions: one of them<br /> manages the commercial side, the other trusts<br /> his word implicitly. The managing partner—one<br /> is told not to use the word &quot;partner &quot;—call him<br /> then fellow adrenturer—sends in accounts show-<br /> ing that he has spent £120, when he has only<br /> spent £100, putting the £20 secretly in his own<br /> pocket. What shall we call that act? A lawyer<br /> tells me it is not &quot;theft,&quot; but &quot;breach of trust,&quot;<br /> and that I must not call any action &quot;theft&quot;<br /> which the law only calls &quot;breach of trust.&quot; I<br /> have put the case to a good many persons. They<br /> all agree that there is no difference in guilt<br /> between the man who thus sends in falsified<br /> accounts and the man who picks a pocket. No<br /> difference at all. If we are agreed that the man<br /> is a Thief, why not say so? I suppose the<br /> offended parties will be angry, but does that<br /> matter?<br /> As for the fact, we cannot too often repeat that<br /> in their proposed draft agreements the publishers<br /> claim the right to overcharge: and as they leave<br /> the percentage blank, they claim the right of<br /> taking whatever they please ; and as they maintain<br /> silence on the question of charging for advertise-<br /> ments which cost them nothing, in spite of the<br /> continued protests of the Society, it is surely not<br /> ill-natured to conclude that they approve of the<br /> practice. And, again, if there is any lingering<br /> doubt as to the truth of the charge, one publisher<br /> was so good as to dispel that doubt by proclaim-<br /> ing and acknowledging that it was his custom to<br /> charge what he had not paid. This was in the<br /> Outlook.<br /> The following paragraph has been sent to me.<br /> It is a cutting from the Independent:<br /> I am sorry to learn that Miss E. Livingston Prescott has<br /> been so much impressed by Sir Walter Besant&#039;s denuncia-<br /> tion of publishers that she is keeping her new novel,<br /> &quot;Helot and Hero,&quot; in her own hands. It has been pro-<br /> duced, I hear, at her own expense, and is being distributed<br /> by Messrs. Simpkin, Marshall, and Co.&quot;<br /> 1 wonder what the writer means by the<br /> &quot;denunciation of publishers.&quot; He repeats, you<br /> see, the last invention. I say, repeating a charge<br /> advanced over and over again by the Committee<br /> of the Society of Authors in their reports, books,<br /> and papers, that &quot;many publishers &quot;—not all—<br /> have been guilty of charging what has not been<br /> paid. Is this &quot;denunciation of publishers &quot; r<br /> And why is the writer of the paragraph sorry &#039;i<br /> Is he sorry that an author has learned to manage<br /> his own affairs for himself? Or is he sorry that<br /> a publisher is denied the rights which, according<br /> to the proposed agreements, he claims, of taking<br /> from the proceeds anything he pleases?<br /> In Literature of March the 18th there was<br /> presented a bibliographical survey of the House<br /> of Commons. The literary strength of the<br /> House is surprising. The list does not pretend<br /> to be exhaustive, but it may be taken as fairly<br /> so. It contains 134 names of Members who have<br /> written books or pamphlets. Surely there has<br /> never before been so large a literary element in any<br /> House of Commons. Among the names are some<br /> which belong to the very front rank of contempo-<br /> rary literature, such as, for instance, A. J. Balfour,<br /> Birrell, Bryce, Dilke, Jebb, Lecky, McCarthy, and<br /> John Morley, not to mention lawyers, journalists,<br /> specialists, essayists, and scientific writers, among<br /> them being John Burns, Sir Edward Clarke, Sir<br /> J. C. Colomb, Radcliffe Cooke, Leonard Courtney,<br /> Lord E. Fitzmaurice, Arnold Forster, Goschen,<br /> Haldane, Vernon Harcourt, Henniker Heaton,<br /> Howorth, Labouchere, Lubbock, Marquis of Lorne,<br /> Sir H. E. Maxwell, T. P. O&#039;Connor, T. W. Russell,<br /> H. M. Stanley, Sir Howard Vincent, Carvell<br /> Williams, and many others. There are, in fact,<br /> at least thirty considerable authors in the House<br /> of Commons ; and of writers of books, journalists,<br /> and writers of pamphlets there are at least 134,<br /> say, one in four. It would be curious to compare<br /> this list with the corresponding list in the<br /> American House of Representatives. A little<br /> analysis of the list shows that many have written<br /> on several subjects. The following numbers,<br /> therefore, sometimes include the same name more<br /> than once. In poetry there are four; in philo-<br /> sophy three; in biography and history there are<br /> thirty; on military and naval matters there are<br /> three; on education two; on essays four; on law<br /> thirteen; on fiction nine; on religion three; on<br /> travel fourteen; on science sixteen; on political<br /> economy thirteen; on politics five; on Colonial<br /> topics one; and under the head of miscellaneous,<br /> including writers of occasional pamphlets, there<br /> are thirty-two. ijio<br /> Since we have so large a literary company in<br /> the House of Commons, would it not be possible<br /> to use this interesting fact for some practical<br /> purpose? There is, for instance, one little reform<br /> that is badly wanted. It is a slight change in<br /> the wording of the Resolution of 1837 by which<br /> the Civil Pension List was created. That resolu-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 257 (#269) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 257<br /> tion granted a sum of .£1200 every year—not<br /> £1200 a year in all—to be devoted to pensions for<br /> persons distinguished in Literature, Science, or<br /> Art, or for those whom the Sovereign may think<br /> fit to honour. We want the last words left out,<br /> so that no one unconnected with Literature,<br /> Science, or Art shall receive a pension from<br /> this fund. On the other hand, the tendency for<br /> some years has been to use the fund for widows<br /> and daughters rather than for actual workers.<br /> After the words &quot;persons distinguished in Litera-<br /> ture, Science, or Art&quot; should come the words<br /> &quot;or their widows or children if these are in<br /> straitened means,&quot; or words to that effect.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> ITALY AND THE UNITED STATES.<br /> Translation from &quot; I Diritti d&#039;Autore, Bolletino<br /> degli atti e hotizie della Societa Italiana degli<br /> Autori.&quot; Anno XVIII., Num. 1-2. Gennaio-<br /> Febbraio, 1889. Page 1.<br /> THE Italian Association of Typographical<br /> Publishers has presented to the Minister<br /> of Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce,<br /> the following memorial, drawn up by the advo-<br /> cate, Ferrucio Foil, in which it begs for a revision<br /> of the Convention for the reciprocal protection<br /> of intellectual works between Italy and the<br /> United States:<br /> To His Excellency the Minister of Agriculture,<br /> Industry and Commerce.<br /> Rome.<br /> May it please Your Excellency:<br /> The Italian Association of Typographical<br /> Publishers previously had occasion, in 1891, to<br /> present to the Italian Government a memorial<br /> respecting the steps which were then being taken<br /> towards a Convention with the United States<br /> regarding artistic and literary property.<br /> At present this Convention has been agreed<br /> upon, and has been in force for some years, so<br /> that it is possible to study its results, and to form<br /> a mature judgment of its effects: and the same<br /> Association takes the liberty of placing before<br /> your Excellency some observations on this<br /> subject.<br /> The Association is convinced that this Con-<br /> vention is injurious to the interests of the Italian<br /> book-trade, and therefore suggests that your<br /> Excellency—in accordance with the clause which<br /> gives both of the contracting parties power to<br /> denounce the Convention at any time—might<br /> treat with the Government of the United States,<br /> with a view to the regulation of the reciprocal<br /> terms of the Convention in some manner more<br /> consonant with the interest of Italian citizeus.<br /> Undoubtedly the law of March 3, 1891 (Copy-<br /> right Act) marked an epoch in copyright legisla-<br /> tion, inasmuch as the United States of America<br /> had, until that time, refused to accord any pro-<br /> tection to the rights of foreigners.<br /> It was, perhaps, in consequence of this that<br /> many European States hastened to conclude<br /> treaties which might enable them to avail them-<br /> selves of the concessions which had been made.<br /> This was done by England (which had the<br /> strongest reasons for taking this step, on account<br /> of the identity of the language, which made com-<br /> pliance with the requirements of the Copyright<br /> Act very easy), by France, by Belgium, by<br /> Switzerland, and finally by Germany.<br /> Italy followed the example of the sister<br /> nations, and joined the Convention, by a royal<br /> decree of Jan. 18, 1893, No. 17.<br /> The terms which the Copyright Act impose<br /> upon foreigners as conditions of obtaining pro-<br /> tection are such that they render illusory the<br /> protection accorded books, lithographs, and<br /> photographs. This can be stated without hesi-<br /> tation, seeing that both the tenor of the terms<br /> of the Act, and experience, prove the fact.<br /> At the present time the works of Italian<br /> authors begin to be known and sought after in<br /> foreign countries; and yet Italian authors and<br /> editors would rather leave the American pub-<br /> lishers at liberty to translate and reprint their<br /> works than avail themselves of the provisions of<br /> the Copyright Act.<br /> This is an incontrovertible proof of the useless-<br /> ness of the protection afforded. And hence it<br /> arises that the publishers find themselves com-<br /> pelled to appeal to your Excellency&#039;s perspicacity.<br /> So long as the Italian exportation was very small,<br /> and the property to be protected consequently<br /> insignificant, the Italian book trade had no<br /> actual reason to protest against the Convention.<br /> Now, however, when happily the exportation is<br /> increasing rapidly, it is necessary that a pro-<br /> vision should be made for the protection of<br /> Italian interests.<br /> The twelfth Article of the Copyright Act enacts<br /> as follows: &quot;This Act shall not apply to the<br /> citizens of a foreign State, unless that State<br /> accords the citizens of the United States the<br /> benefit of a protection of copyright on a basis<br /> substantially the same as that on which pro-<br /> tection is accorded to its own citizens. . . .<br /> The existence of these conditions shall be deter-<br /> mined by a proclamation of the President.&quot;<br /> Therefore, in accordance with this Article,<br /> foreigners who desire to avail themselves of the<br /> Copyright Act, after their Government has ob-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 258 (#270) ############################################<br /> <br /> 258<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> tained the prescribed proclamation, have to<br /> comply with certain prescriptions which the law<br /> has enacted for American citizens. So, in ac-<br /> cordance with paragraph 4956, protection cannot<br /> be claimed unless two copies of the book which<br /> is to be protected have been, at the latest on the<br /> day of publication, sent to the Librarian of<br /> Congress in the United States, or, in the case of<br /> a foreign country, have been deposited with the<br /> post in the territory of the &quot;United States addressed<br /> to the Librarian. But this is not enough. These two<br /> copies must have been printed from type composed<br /> in the territory of the United States, or from stereo-<br /> typed plates made from type so composed. If,<br /> then, the European author of a work does not<br /> wish to lose the benefits of the American pro-<br /> tection, he must, before offering his work to the<br /> public in his own country, find a publisher in the<br /> United States, he must send him a copy of his<br /> manuscript, wait until a translation of it has<br /> been made, until the American typographical<br /> composition has been completed, and until two<br /> copies of the translation thus printed have<br /> been consigned to the Librarian of Congress at<br /> Washington, or lodged with the post, addressed to<br /> him. Then alone can he proceed to issue the<br /> original edition of his book. The slightest<br /> mistake, the smallest delay which may occur in<br /> the composition in the United States, causing the<br /> author, in his ignorance of it, to produce the<br /> original publication but one day before the trans-<br /> lation, and the protection becomes null, all the<br /> steps taken are void, and pirate publishers can<br /> produce the work with impunity, without either<br /> author or publisher possessing any rights.<br /> The explanation of the system suffices to prove<br /> that it is absolutely impossible for our authors to<br /> get protection of their rights. It will be under-<br /> stood that the English are able to comply with<br /> the terms imposed. The identity of language<br /> renders translation unnecessary, and the trans-<br /> mission of their works easy and profitable. But<br /> where there is a question of translation, the home<br /> market must be thought of before the inter-<br /> national market. How shall it be foreseen that<br /> the book will have but a small success, or that it<br /> shall have such a success that it will cross the<br /> Atlantic, and make profitable and possible an<br /> American translation before the book has been<br /> published in Italy?<br /> We have pointed out to your Excellency how<br /> the English find themselves in a privileged posi-<br /> tion when compared with the European States.<br /> Nevertheless, even amongst them the special con-<br /> ditions of simultaneous printing which the Ameri-<br /> can law imposes have created grave inconveniences,<br /> and sometimes have rendered protection impos-<br /> sible. Some of these cases were mentioned in the<br /> bulletin of the Berne Bureau, which quoted the<br /> words of an American publicist, who made in the<br /> Nation the following important declaration:<br /> &quot;Professor Mover is the victim of our stupid con-<br /> dition of American fabrication, upon which the<br /> protection of the Copyright Act depends.&quot;<br /> In Germany, the agitation against the treaty is<br /> also active. In the words of the deputy Dietz,<br /> &quot;Germany gives freely, to receive but a meagre<br /> return.&quot;<br /> If these words are true of Germany and of the<br /> European States, they are much more true of<br /> Italy, which gives much more than all the<br /> other European States. In fact, the other States<br /> impose upon the Americans who wish to obtain<br /> literary protection more or less extended formali-<br /> ties. In England, the publication must be simul-<br /> taneous in both countries—here there is an exact<br /> reciprocity—the title must be registered at<br /> Stationers&#039; Hall, and a fee of 5s. paid. In France<br /> two copies of the publication must be deposited<br /> with the Minister of the Interior, &amp;c.<br /> In Italy, on the contrary, no formality is pre-<br /> scribed, and the American citizen finds himself<br /> in a better position than the Italian himself.<br /> To obtain the protection] of the law the Italian<br /> must comply with the formalities prescribed by<br /> the law of 1882. The American citizen is not<br /> obliged to do this. If he has, at the time of the<br /> publication of the original edition, complied with<br /> the formalities prescribed by his own legislation,<br /> this suffices to secure him the protection of the<br /> law in Italy. In fact, Article 40 of the Act con-<br /> templates the case of a State which promises<br /> protection to other States on the condition that<br /> the latter shall guarantee the authors of works<br /> published in its territories all the rights and pro-<br /> tections sanctioned by their legislation; and in<br /> this case authorises the Government to accord<br /> reciprocity by a Royal decree. This is precisely<br /> the case of the United States. For such States<br /> Article 40 enacts: &quot;If in a foreign State deposit<br /> of copies is prescribed, or a declaration at the<br /> time of publication of a work, proof that one or<br /> the other has been executed in conformity with<br /> the law of the country suffices to secure for the<br /> work published here the author&#039;s copyright in this<br /> Kingdom. Under the opposite hypothesis the<br /> deposit and the declaration prescribed in the<br /> present law can be effected either in Italy or<br /> abroad at an Italian Consulate.&quot; Seeing, then,<br /> that the Royal decree exists between Italy and<br /> the United States, and that in the United States<br /> deposit in the Library of Congress is prescribed,<br /> it follows that the deposit effected at Washington<br /> gives, without any further formality, a right to<br /> protection in Italy.<br /> Your Excellency will perceive how different is<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 259 (#271) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 259<br /> the position of the citizens of the two States<br /> between which a reciprocity was to be established<br /> —one that exists in the letter of the treaty only,<br /> and certainly not in its essential working.<br /> It is impossible for a moment to entertain any<br /> doubt of the immediate necessity of obtaining a<br /> real protection for Italian intellectual works,<br /> which are beginning to have a sale on the<br /> American Continent.<br /> If there be any difficulty which can oppose the<br /> equitable wishes of the Italian authors and pub-<br /> lishers, it is that which may arise from the con-<br /> flicting interests of the former and those of<br /> musical authors and publishers. ^Respecting<br /> these works, it is for the future agreed, in conse-<br /> quence of a number of legal decisions, that they<br /> ueed not be manufactured in the United States.<br /> But your Excellency&#039;s high intelligence and<br /> right judgment will doubtlessly discover some<br /> manner of combining the interests of both<br /> parties, seeing that it is not just that one section<br /> of producers of intellectual works should be<br /> sacrificed to the other.<br /> The Italian Association of Typographical Pub-<br /> lishers therefore trusts that your Excellency will<br /> be so good as, without ipso facto denouncing the<br /> treaty, to open communications with the Govern-<br /> ment of Washington with a view to some just<br /> modification that may safeguard the interests of<br /> all Italian citizens.<br /> It is certain that the Washington Government<br /> ought not to wish the treaty denounced, seeing<br /> that it gives, as we have shown, a large pro-<br /> tection to American writers, who are beginning to<br /> find a sale in our Peninsula.<br /> As England has succeeded in stipulating for a<br /> treaty which protects the authors of both States<br /> in a perfectly equal manner, so we trust<br /> your Excellency may be able to induce the<br /> Government of the United States to agree to a<br /> treaty more in accord with the interests of Italians<br /> than that which at present exists. And consider-<br /> ing that the Copyright Act does take account of<br /> the principle of reciprocity, if it be pointed out<br /> that, with the present treaty, that reciprocity does<br /> not really exist, the Washington Government<br /> cannot refuse to discuss the subject; and this<br /> the more as the obligations imposed by the Copy-<br /> right Act were suggested only by a desire of<br /> protection from English competition, certainly<br /> without reference to other States.<br /> We shall certainly not here presume to suggest<br /> to your Excellency the means to be adopted to<br /> carry out the end desired. For the Italian<br /> Association of Typographical Publishers it is<br /> enough to have pointed out this important<br /> subject to the attention of your Excellency. For<br /> musical works the treaty may certainly remain<br /> such as it is at present. It sufficiently protects<br /> such artistic property. For books, lithographs,<br /> and photographs it may, on the other hand, be<br /> possible to procure the abrogation of the principle<br /> which imposes simultaneous publication in both<br /> countries and the printing from American type<br /> or composition. This is the greatest desideratum.<br /> To obtain it it will suffice that the United States<br /> should apply the principle of a real reciprocity in<br /> the manner in which it is understood and applied<br /> by our Legislation. That is to say, to secure pro-<br /> tection in a foreign State it is not necessary to<br /> conform with the laws of that State, but it<br /> suffices to have complied with the requirements<br /> of the State of origin. So, as at present, as the<br /> American citizen who has made the prescribed<br /> deposit in the Library of Congress is thereby at<br /> once, without any further formality, protected in<br /> Italy, so it ought to be established that the<br /> Italian citizen who has done what the Italian law<br /> requires should, without further formalities, be<br /> entitled to the protection of the American<br /> tribunals.<br /> If it is not possible to secure this result, it<br /> should at least be possible to obtain this, that the<br /> citizen of those States cannot have protection in<br /> Italy for his literary labours unless the work is<br /> printed simultaneously in the country of origin<br /> and in Italy.<br /> These and other modifications may be weighed<br /> and brought into effect by your Excellency. And<br /> if nothing can be obtained, it will be at least<br /> opportune to agree that, whilst the treaty shall<br /> continue in force for musical works, it shall be<br /> abrogated for books. In this way the Italian<br /> author will lose nothing, since, as we see, the<br /> present protection is illusory. But, at least, the<br /> American also will not be protected by us, and<br /> the works of the United States will become<br /> public property. Complete liberty in both coun-<br /> tries will be better, as the present state of the<br /> case is this, that we give the American more<br /> protection than the Italian citizen, whilst in the<br /> United States the Italian intellectual works are<br /> exploited by everyone without their authors or<br /> their publishers, who have been at the expense<br /> and trouble of producing them, receiving any<br /> tangible advantage from their labours. In effect,<br /> as has been said in a notable article published in<br /> the Bulletin of Berne, since that after Zola no<br /> one on the Continent has found it convenient to<br /> make an American edition, the pirates have been<br /> able to declare that foreigners do not wish to<br /> avail themselves of the benefits of the American<br /> law, and so have robbed them with the greatest<br /> coolness.<br /> Your Excellency:<br /> The Italian Association of Typographical Pub-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 260 (#272) ############################################<br /> <br /> 260<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> lishers trusts that your Excellency will make a<br /> serious examination of the question which it has<br /> had&#039; the honour of laying before you. Italian<br /> works, as has been already said, are beginning to<br /> be disseminated in the United States, and this<br /> dissemination will in the future become greater.<br /> It is necessary to take precautions for the future<br /> that the frait of so much labour and of so many<br /> expenses may not be lost in that country which<br /> pays the highest price for the things which it<br /> consumes, of whatsoever kind they may be. In<br /> the United States, too, the principles of a true<br /> and real protection of intellectual works are con-<br /> stantly making advance. It undoubtedly follows<br /> that the Government of Washington will not<br /> altogether easily suffer the Italian treaty to be<br /> denounced, particularly as this might be the<br /> prelude of a similar reaction in other States. It<br /> should, therefore, be possible to obtain a revision<br /> of the treaty in a sense in conformity with Italian<br /> interests.<br /> The Italian Association of Typographical<br /> Publishers has great confidence in the high<br /> sense of your Excellency, and awaits with tran-<br /> quility to see your efforts crowned with that<br /> success which neither can nor ought to be un-<br /> attainable in so patriotic an enterprise.<br /> THE ANNUAL DINNER.<br /> THE Annual Dinner of the Society of Authors<br /> will be held at the Trocadero Restaurant,<br /> Piccadilly, W., on Thursday, May 4, at<br /> 7.30 p.m. The chair will be taken by Mr. Augus-<br /> tine Birrell, Q.C., M.P. Tickets for the dinner<br /> will be 1 guinea, inclusive of everything. The<br /> formal notice of the dinner will be sent out to<br /> each member in the course of a day or so. The<br /> following ladies and gentlemen have kindly con-<br /> sented to act as stewards of the dinner:<br /> The Eev. E. A. Abbott, D.D.<br /> William Allingham, F.E.C.S.<br /> Sir Edwin Arnold, K.C.I.E.,<br /> C.S.I.<br /> Sir Robert S. Ball, LL.D.,<br /> P.E.S.<br /> Bobert Bateman.<br /> Miss A. E. Bayly (&quot;Edna<br /> Lyall.&quot;)<br /> Arthur W. a-Beckett.<br /> P. B. Beddard, F.E.S.<br /> E. F. Benson.<br /> Sir Henry G. Bergne,<br /> K.C.M.G.<br /> Mrs. Osear Beringer.<br /> Sir Walter Besant.<br /> W. H. Besant, F.B.S., D.Sc.<br /> ponlteney Bigelow.<br /> Mrs. Craigie (&quot; Jchn Oliver<br /> Hobbes.&quot;)<br /> Oswald Crawford, C.M.G.<br /> Mrs. B. M. Croker.<br /> Lady Florence Dixie.<br /> Austin Dobson.<br /> Sir George Douglas, Bart.<br /> Prof. E. Dowden, LL.D., &amp;c.<br /> A. Conan Doyle, M.D.<br /> A. W. Dnbourg.<br /> TheVen. Archdeacon Farrar,<br /> D.D., F.E.S.<br /> Basil Field.<br /> Prof. Michael Foster, F.E.S.,<br /> D.Sc, &amp;c.<br /> Douglas W. Freshfield.<br /> Signor Manuel Garcia.<br /> Eichard Garnett, C.B.,<br /> LL.D.<br /> Kenneth Grahame.<br /> Francis Gribble.<br /> H. Eider Haggard.<br /> Prof. J. W. Hales.<br /> Thomas Hardy.<br /> Anthony Hope Hawkins.<br /> Silas K. Hocking.<br /> E. W. Hornnng.<br /> Mrs. Humphreys (&quot; Eita&quot;).<br /> Sir Henry Irving.<br /> Dr. Sophia Jex-Blake.<br /> The Eev. Prebendary Harry<br /> Jones.<br /> Henry Arthur Jones.<br /> H. G. Keene, CLE.<br /> J. Scott Keltie, LL D.<br /> Mrs. Edward Kennard.<br /> The Very Eev. Dean Kit-<br /> chin, D.D., F.S.A.<br /> W. E. H. Leoky, P.C.<br /> Lady William Lennox.<br /> J. Stanley Little.<br /> Sir Norman Lookyer,K.C.B.,<br /> P.E S.<br /> Sir John Lubbock, Bart.,<br /> P.O., &amp;o.<br /> Eichard Marsh.<br /> The Eev. Prof. T. G.Bonney,<br /> F.E.S.<br /> Oscar Browning.<br /> Prof. C. A. Buchheim.<br /> Mrs. Hodgson Harnett.<br /> Mrs. Mona Caird.<br /> Lady Colin Campbell.<br /> Prof. Lewis Campbell.<br /> Eosa Nouchette Carey.<br /> Egerton Castle, F.S.A.<br /> Sir WiUiam Charley, Q.C.,<br /> D.C.L.<br /> Prof. A. H. Church, F.E.S.<br /> Mrs. W. K. Clifford.<br /> Edward Clodd.<br /> W. Morris Colles.<br /> The Hon. Jchn Collier.<br /> Sir Martin Conway.<br /> the Lord<br /> , F.E.S.<br /> Florence Marryat.<br /> Sir Herbert Maxwell, Bart.,<br /> P.C.<br /> Justin McCarthy.<br /> George Meredith.<br /> Jean Middlemass.<br /> The Eev. A. W. Momerie.<br /> F. Frankfort Moore.<br /> Arthur Morrison.<br /> Henry Norman.<br /> W. E. Norris.<br /> Gilbert Parker.<br /> Max Pemberton.<br /> The Eight Hon.<br /> Pirbright, P.C,<br /> Sir. Frederick Pollock, Bart.,<br /> LL.D.<br /> Morley Eoberts.<br /> W. M. Eossetti.<br /> Owen Seaman.<br /> Prof. Adam Sedgwick.<br /> G. Bernard Shaw.<br /> The Eev. Prof. Skeat, LL.D.<br /> Herbert Spencer.<br /> M. H. Spielmann.<br /> Victor Spiers.<br /> Sir John Stainer, Mub. Doc.<br /> Prof. Villiers Stanford, Mus.<br /> Doc.<br /> Henry M. Stanley.<br /> J. Ashby Sterry.<br /> Bram Stoker.<br /> Francis Storr.<br /> The Duohess of Sutherland.<br /> Sir Eichard Temple, Bart,<br /> G.C.S.I., &amp;o.<br /> Sir Henry Thompson, Bart.,<br /> F.E.C.S., &amp;o.<br /> The Eev. Prebendary God-<br /> frey Thring.<br /> J. Todhunter, M.D.<br /> &quot;Mark Twain.&quot;<br /> Mrs. Humphry Ward.<br /> Alfred E. T. Watson.<br /> J. McNeill Whistler.<br /> Miss Charlotte M. Yonge.<br /> KING ALFRED MEMORIAL.<br /> AMEETING in connection with the proposed<br /> national commemoration in 1901 of the<br /> thousandth anniversary of the death of<br /> King Alfred was held at the Mansion House,<br /> on March 6, the Lord Mayor of London pre-<br /> siding. Mr. Hamo Thornycroft has been asked<br /> if he will undertake the colossal statue, for<br /> which a site has been given by the Mayor<br /> of Winchester. For the memorial hall, or<br /> museum, it has been decided to select the<br /> historic grounds of Wolvesey Castle (close to the<br /> statue) which, till about a century ago, was the<br /> residence of Kings, or the home of the Bishops<br /> of Winchester, traditionally from the time of<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 261 (#273) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Bishop Agilbert, in the seventh century. It has<br /> been decided also to issue a popular record of King<br /> Alfred&#039;s life, containing contributions on Saxon<br /> Laws, by Sir Frederick Pollock; on Saxon Arts,<br /> by the Rev. W. J. Loftie; on Alfred as a religious<br /> man and educationist, by the Bishop of Bristol;<br /> Alfred as a geographer, by Sir Clements Mark-<br /> ham; as a warrior, by Professor Oman; and as a<br /> writer, by Professor Earle. Sir Walter Besant<br /> will write an introduction, and the Poet Laureate<br /> hopes to contribute verses.<br /> —<br /> WILLIAM BLACK MEMORIAL-<br /> LORD ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL issued,<br /> on Feb. 27, the following circular:—A<br /> committee has been formed for the purpose<br /> of establishing a memorial to the late William<br /> Black. It is proposed that friends and admirers<br /> of the late novelist throughout the world be<br /> invited to contribute to this purpose. This<br /> memorial may take the form of a lifeboat for the<br /> West Coast of Scotland if a useful position be<br /> found for it there. If not, the committee will<br /> consider the form the memorial should take. Two<br /> officials of the Northern Lights Commissioners<br /> are now investigating the matter. A list of the<br /> committee will be advertised in the leading<br /> journals. In the meantime subscriptions will be<br /> received by Messrs. Coutts, 59, Strand, London,<br /> and by the editor of the Oban Times, Oban,<br /> KB.<br /> INTERNATIONAL PRESS CONGRESS.<br /> MR. JAMES BAKER, author of &quot;The<br /> Cardinal&#039;s Page,&quot; has just left for Rome,<br /> as English delegate to the International<br /> Press Congress; he will act as German inter-<br /> preter to the English section. The principal<br /> subjects for discussion at the congress are an<br /> international &quot;carte d&#039;identite&quot; for Press-men<br /> travelling abroad; the establishment of a central<br /> official periodical for Press matters, although<br /> &quot;La Presse Internationale&quot; will serve that<br /> purpose at present; Press legislation in various<br /> countries; artistic property; reduction of postal<br /> tariffs for papers; adoption of an abbreviated<br /> international code for Press telegrams; and the<br /> legal position of journalists in various countries,<br /> &amp;c. We hope to receive a full account of the<br /> proceedings from Mr. James Baker for our next<br /> issue.<br /> THE ROYAL LITERARY FUND.<br /> riHHE annual general meeting in connection<br /> I with the Royal Literary Fund was held at<br /> the offices in Adelphi-terrace, on March 8,<br /> Sir M. E. Grant Luff presiding. The report pre-<br /> sented by Sir Theodore Martin showed that grants<br /> to the amount of .£1905 had been made during the<br /> year to twenty-seven different cases. The par-<br /> ticulars of these were as follows : Class T. (history<br /> and biography, &amp;c.), four grants, .£450 ; Class II.<br /> (science and art), four grants, .£230; Class III.<br /> (classical literature and education), four grants,<br /> £420; Class IV. (novels and tales), four grants,<br /> . £ 12 5; Class V. (poetry and the drama), three grants,<br /> .£340; Class VI. (miscellaneous), eight grants,<br /> .£340; total, twenty-seven grants, .£1905. There<br /> were relieved: fourteen males, .£855; thirteen<br /> females (viz., eight authors, .£410; four widows,<br /> .£600; one orphan, .£40), .£1050; total, .£1905.<br /> The total receipts amounted to over .£4000,<br /> and of this about .£1800 has been invested. A<br /> total sum of .£56,269 is now invested, producing<br /> an income of .£1700. Sir T. Martin pointed out<br /> that in this way the fund was being rendered less<br /> dependent on fluctuating subscriptions.<br /> Mr. Brabrook objected that there was no<br /> necessity for accumulating investments. They<br /> were not a commercial body, but were intended to<br /> assist authors and others connected with the pro-<br /> fession of literature who had fallen into distress.<br /> He knew that the Fund was very well adminis-<br /> tered, but he could scarcely think that twenty-<br /> seven constituted the whole number of persons it<br /> was meant to relieve. He would rather see the<br /> number doubled and the amount of relief also<br /> doubled than add to the .£60,000 invested capital<br /> of this admirably managed institution. He<br /> thought the Fund had enough invested to insure<br /> stability.<br /> Sir T. Martin explained that he had not meant<br /> by his remark that they ought in any way to con-<br /> tract their grants, but only to invest certain<br /> special gifts.<br /> The report was adopted unanimously. The<br /> Duke of Devonshire and Mr. Edward Dicey were<br /> chosen to fill the vacancies among the vice-presi-<br /> dents caused by the deaths of Mr. Gladstone and<br /> Lord Herschell.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—The Use of Extracts.<br /> ISHOULD be much interested to know what is<br /> the generally accepted rule for the use of<br /> extracts from standard authors, and whether<br /> my experience in this respect be an unusual one. A<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 262 (#274) ############################################<br /> <br /> 262<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> short time since the editor of a well-known and<br /> long-established magazine accepted from me an<br /> article on a literary subject, which contained trans-<br /> lations of a few sonnets and extracts from one or<br /> two longer poems, made by a distinguished writer<br /> who has been dead a few years. I wrote under<br /> advice to this gentleman&#039;s brother and literary<br /> representative to ask his permission to use them.<br /> He gave me a cordial consent, but added, &quot;The<br /> copyright is in a general sense mine, but the pub-<br /> lishers (name and address) have also an interest<br /> in it, and it would be better if you consulted<br /> them as well. They would, I apprehend, make no<br /> difficulty.&quot; I was, therefore, considerably sur-<br /> prised when the publishers did make a difficulty<br /> to the extent of asking two guineas for the use<br /> of the extracts. As I did not feel disposed to<br /> pay this, I inquired what charge (if any) they<br /> would make for the use of part of one extract<br /> and three lines from a sonnet. For this they<br /> replied they would make a &quot; nominal charge&quot; of<br /> i0s. 6d. I declined their kind offer, and either<br /> deleted the translations or substituted versions of<br /> my own. It was fortunate that I was able to do<br /> so without material damage to the article, but<br /> there might be circumstances under which it<br /> would not be possible. For the use of quotations<br /> as chapter headings, or in volumes of extracts, it<br /> surely cannot be customary to charge to this<br /> extent? If so, I fear literature would suffer, as<br /> few authors can afford to pay at this rate, and<br /> consequently quotations would be to a great<br /> measure barred. I should add that I was, of<br /> course, prepared, and told the publishers so, to<br /> make full acknowledgment if they had given<br /> their consent. f_ N. C.<br /> II.—Payment on Acceptance.<br /> May I add another to your list of magazines<br /> as paying for articles on acceptance? This is the<br /> invariable rule of Great Thoughts.<br /> Herbert D. Williams.<br /> III.—Writing for Low Pay.<br /> 1.<br /> In reference to certain remarks in the Queen<br /> (see enclosed cutting*) may I mention the follow-<br /> ing facts?<br /> * &quot;A oorreepondent sends a letter concerning the women<br /> who write for nothing, or for low pay, because they are placed<br /> beyond the need of working for their livelihood. She says<br /> that she has sent many papers —stories and other things—<br /> to the editors of papers; that they have been accepted;<br /> that generally payment is either refused, or that application<br /> for payment is not answered. She says, quite rightly, that<br /> when an editor receives a MS. he must know that it is not<br /> sent as a gift, and that it is his duty either to return the<br /> MS. or to warn the author that if it appears it will not be<br /> paid for,&quot;<br /> Women are by no means the worst offenders in<br /> this matter. I was for over six years editress of<br /> a popular London novelette, which paid one<br /> all round price for its stories (.£6) ; but I have<br /> had letters over and over again from writers (of<br /> both sexes) saying that if only their MSS. could<br /> be taken, they would gladly accept £2, and pur-<br /> chase 100 copies. I need hardly say the offer<br /> was invariably refused.<br /> There are—judging from twenty years&#039; experi-<br /> ence in what are called penny papers—two classes<br /> of people willing to write below market value:<br /> 1. The amateur who has a comfortable home, and<br /> only wants the pleasure of appearing in print.<br /> 2. The very poor and unsophisticated writer, who,<br /> knowing nothing of the prices that rule in literary<br /> work, honestly thinks £2 or .£3 fair remuneration<br /> for a story that took perhaps a week to write.<br /> I do not think this class should be harshly<br /> judged; they could not earn .£3—or even £2—<br /> by teaching, by fancy work, or by any of the<br /> many vaunted &quot;Home&quot; employments, their<br /> expenditure has been perhaps 6d. of paper, and so<br /> the £2 or .£3 when it comes seems handsome.<br /> If the correspondent referred to is writing of<br /> the better class magazines, notably those pub-<br /> lished by religious societies, it is a well-known<br /> fact that many clergymen and ladies of rank do<br /> write gratuitously for these, thinking it a sort of<br /> charity or a work for religion.<br /> I have been writing (in penny papers only) for<br /> over twenty-five years, but / never once had pay-<br /> ment for an article refused.<br /> I think perhaps a very simple plan has safe-<br /> guarded me from the difficulties mentioned by<br /> your correspondent. In writing to strangers (i.e.<br /> unknown editors) I always indorse my MSS. on<br /> title page: &quot;Payment expected,&quot; and in an accom-<br /> panying letter I &quot; hope they may be inclined to<br /> purchase MSS.&quot; (I fancy the general wording is<br /> &quot;accept&quot;). I have never known this plan to fail,<br /> and now for many years past I have been earn-<br /> ing a very comfortable income from penny papers.<br /> A Story Writer.<br /> 11.<br /> The conviction is growing amongst observers of<br /> the difficulties, trials, and unnecessary anxieties<br /> inflicted upon writers for magazines, reviews, and<br /> journals that, until a number of such writers<br /> unite upon certain points and, as a body, make a<br /> stand for fairness, the present unbusinesslike<br /> habits of editors in dealing with MSS. and the<br /> unjust rates of payment will continue. Would it<br /> be possible for, say, fifty or sixty respected and<br /> self-respecting people to adopt some such plan as<br /> that followed by typewriters and fix a minimum<br /> sum below which they would not sell their<br /> articles?<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 263 (#275) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 263<br /> In England the smallest amount per page<br /> offered writers of established reputation is one<br /> guinea; in the United States about seven dollars.<br /> They usually, of course, receive more but never<br /> (so far as I am able to ascertain) less.<br /> On the other hand, the largest sum offered<br /> writers not so well known is, in England, a<br /> guinea, in America, seven dollars a page; the<br /> smallest is any pittance that an editor chooses to<br /> assign; their maximum pay is therefore never<br /> greater than the minimum amount received by the<br /> well-known. So far the proportion is, perhaps,<br /> save in special cases, just.<br /> But should their minimum price be permitted<br /> to descend below 10s. per page of 500 words, or<br /> one guinea for 1000 words for magazines and<br /> reviews f Or 15*. per page of 500 words and 30*.<br /> for 1000 words for journals, newspapers, and all<br /> other publications?<br /> No doubt it would seem to editors a joke if<br /> they were to receive a printed card setting forth<br /> such terms.<br /> But why should one set of literary workers<br /> continue to press so heavily upon another set?<br /> A. M. B.<br /> QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.<br /> T.—Who am I Like?<br /> Please allow me a corner in which to traverse<br /> the extraordinary statement of a correspondent<br /> signing himself &quot;Grammar,&quot; that &quot;Who am I<br /> like?&quot; is right, and &quot;Whom am I like&#039;:&#039;&quot; is<br /> wrong.<br /> I contend that the latter is correct, the accusa-<br /> tive case being governed by the preposition &quot; to&quot;<br /> understood. The sentence is really elliptical for<br /> &quot;To whom am I like &#039;&lt;&quot;<br /> If this does not carry conviction, let us put it<br /> to the test by answering the question. &quot;Who<br /> am I like?&quot; asks &quot;Grammar.&quot; &quot;You are like<br /> he,&quot; is the grammatically consistent reply. The<br /> verb &quot; to be&quot; governs the nominative case! Yes;<br /> but the preposition &quot;to&quot; (understood) requires<br /> the accusative.<br /> In an old novel by Mr. Sala—&quot; The Seven Sons<br /> of Mammon &quot;—there are two instances in which<br /> that practised writer says &quot;whom I believe was&quot;<br /> so-and-so. It is astounding.<br /> Cacophony is sometimes inseparable from<br /> strict accuracy. This shows that the ear has<br /> become degenerate, from being accustomed to<br /> incorrect expressions. &quot;He left before I &quot; is<br /> quite accurate, if &quot;before&quot; is an adverb of<br /> time; it means &quot;before I did.&quot; &quot;He left<br /> before me&quot; really means that he walked in<br /> front of me.<br /> Once more. &quot;Those sort of things&quot; and &quot;that<br /> sort of things &quot; are both as vile as they can be;<br /> ugly and ungrammatical into the bargain. But<br /> happily there is a tertium quid. I submit that<br /> the true form is &quot; things of that sort.&quot;<br /> Frederic H. Balfour.<br /> II.—The Queen&#039;s English.<br /> In a morning paper: &quot;There is no shame<br /> in a man changing [i.e., who changes] his<br /> mind.&quot; Then a man who changes his mind is<br /> to be supposed devoid of shame, which is hard.<br /> The &quot; no shame &quot; is surely not in the man, but in<br /> his change of opinion. &quot;There is no harm in a<br /> man&#039;s expressing his opinion in certain circum-<br /> stances &quot;; but to say that a man who expresses<br /> his opinions is therefore harmless, would be rash.<br /> Yet that is the strict meaning of&quot; There is no<br /> harm in a man expressing,&quot; &amp;c.<br /> False Genitive.<br /> BOOK TALE.<br /> MR. W. S. LILLY has in the press a new<br /> work dealing with the philosophy of<br /> government, and entitled &quot;First Prin-<br /> ciples in Politics.&quot; It will be published imme-<br /> diately by Mr. Murray.<br /> Mr. J. W. Headlam, of Cambridge, has written<br /> a volume entitled &quot; Bismarck and the New German<br /> Empire&quot; for Messrs. Putnam&#039;s &quot;Heioesof the<br /> Nation&quot; Series.<br /> One of the most important biographies of the<br /> Spring season will naturally be that of William<br /> Morris, which Mr. J. W. Mackail has written.<br /> Some of the chapters of the book are based prin-<br /> cipally on information given to the author by<br /> Sir Edwird Burne-Jones, and others who knew<br /> Morris intimately have rendered Mr. Mackail<br /> similar service. He has also had complete access<br /> to Morris&#039;s papers, and deals fully with the<br /> Socialist part of the career.<br /> A new story by B. L. Farjeon, called &quot; Samuel<br /> Boyd, of Catchpole Square,&quot; is being published<br /> by Messrs. Hutchinson.<br /> Mr. Max Pemberton&#039;s new story &quot;The Garden<br /> of Swords&quot; deals with the great siege of Stras-<br /> burg in the Franco-German VVar, and in the love-<br /> interest the heroine is an English girl who was<br /> married to a French officer on the eve of the<br /> campaign. The book will be published at once by<br /> Messrs. Cassell.<br /> Professor Davidson, of Aberdeen University,<br /> has written a book on &quot;Christian Ethics&quot; for<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 264 (#276) ############################################<br /> <br /> 264<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Messrs. A. and C. Black&#039;s &quot;Guild Library&quot;<br /> Series.<br /> In view of the Cromwell Tercentenary on<br /> April 25, a book on &quot;Oliver Cromwell and His<br /> Times &quot; has been written by Mr. G. Holden Pike,<br /> and will be published by Mr. Fisher Unwin.<br /> Professor Arber is editing a series of British<br /> authologies of English verse, representing 300<br /> authors, and containing about 2500 entire poems<br /> and songs, besides a limited number of extracts.<br /> The first anthology will deal with the poet<br /> Dunbar. Each volume will have an index and a<br /> glossary. The Oxford University Press is the<br /> publisher.<br /> Formal application has been made to the<br /> Treasury for a Civil List pension for the widow<br /> of the late Mr. Gleeson White.<br /> Mr. Wheatley&#039;s edition of Pepys&#039;s Diary will be<br /> complete in two more volumes, one of which con-<br /> sists of the index, while the other is devoted to<br /> Pepysiana, including a chapter on the relatives of<br /> Pepys, and personal notes on his school, college,<br /> and business life, and the London of his time.<br /> Mr. Henry James (says the Athemeuvi) has<br /> written a new novel, called &quot; The Awkward Age,&quot;<br /> which will appear shortly.<br /> Forthcoming art publications by Messrs. George<br /> Bell and Sons include &quot; Line and Form,&quot; by Mr.<br /> Walter Crane; a record and review of the life and<br /> work of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, by Mr. H. C.<br /> Marillier; a volume on Botticelli, by Mr. Herbert<br /> P. Thorne; and one on the Pre-Raphaelite School,<br /> by Mr. Percy H. Bate, curator of the Holburne<br /> Museum, Bath.<br /> An important literary project is a series called,<br /> with the approval of the Queen, &quot; The Victoria<br /> History of the Counties of England,&quot; which will<br /> show the condition of the country at the opening<br /> of the twentieth centurv. The general editors<br /> are Mr. H. Arthur Do&#039;ubleday, F.R.G.S., and<br /> Mr. Lawrence Gomme, F.S.A., and the advisory<br /> committee includes Lord Salisbury, Lord Roseberv,<br /> the Duke of Devonshire, Chancellor of the Uni-<br /> versity of Cambridge, the Duke of Portland, the<br /> Marquis of Lome, the Earl of Coventry, Ihe<br /> Bishop of London, the Bishop of Oxford, Lord<br /> Acton, Sir Frederick Pollock, Bart., Sir Edward<br /> Maunde Thompson, Sir Henry Maxwell-Lyte, Sir<br /> Joseph Hooker, Sir Archibald Geikie, and others.<br /> The history of each county will be complete in<br /> itself. &quot;Hampshire&quot; is nearly ready, and is<br /> in four volumes. The publishers are Messrs.<br /> Constable.<br /> Mrs. W. M. Ramsay, author of &quot;Everyday<br /> Life in Turkey,&quot; which was published over a<br /> year ago, has now written a novel entitled<br /> &quot;The Romance of Elisavet,&quot; to be published by<br /> Messrs. Hodder and Stoughton.<br /> Tennyson&#039;s complete poetical works, exclusive<br /> of the dramas, will be published in a few days by<br /> Messrs. Macmillan in their Globe Library at<br /> 3*. 6d.<br /> Mr. Tighe Hopkins&#039;s novel, &quot; Nell Haffenden,&quot;<br /> which was published in two volumes some years<br /> ago, is now to be issued by Messrs. Chatto and<br /> Windus in one volume, with illustrations.<br /> &quot;Well, after All,&quot; is the title of Mr. Frankfort<br /> Moore&#039;s new novel, which Messrs. Hutchinson<br /> will publish shortly.<br /> Robert Louis Stevenson was visiting the<br /> Riviera in 1873, and in poor health. How poor<br /> was his health may be judged from his own<br /> account, which occurs in one of his letters which<br /> are at present appearing monthly in Scribner&#039;s<br /> Magazine. He is writing from Mentoue:<br /> I don&#039;t see mach beiuty. I have lost ihe key ; I can only<br /> be placid and inert, and see the bright daj s go past naelea-ly<br /> one after another; therefore, don&#039;t talk foolishly with 3 oor<br /> month any more abont getting liberty by being ill and going<br /> south rid&#039; the sick-bed. It is not the old free-born b&#039;rd that<br /> gets thus to freedom; but I know not what manacled and<br /> hide-bound spirit, incapable of pleasure, the clay of a man.<br /> Go south! Why, I saw more beauty with my eyes health-<br /> fully alert to see in two wet windy February afternoons in<br /> Scotland than I oan see in my beautiful olive gardens and<br /> grey hills in a whole week in my low and lost estate, as the<br /> Shorter Catechism puts it somewheie. It is a pitiable<br /> blindness, this blindness of the soul; I hope it may not be<br /> long with me. So remember to keep well; and remember<br /> rather anything than not to keep well; and again I say,<br /> anything rather than not to keep well.<br /> George Henry Lewes&#039;s &quot;Life of Robespierre&quot;<br /> is being republished by Messrs. Chapman and<br /> Hall, in view of tne forthcoming production of<br /> the play written by M. Sardou for Sir Henry<br /> Irving. This play is being translated by Mr.<br /> Laurence Irving, and will be staged at the Lyceum<br /> on April 15.<br /> Sixpenny editions of modern works increase<br /> almost daily. Two of the latest to be announced<br /> in this form are Mr. Ban ie&#039;s &quot;A Window in<br /> Thrums&quot; and Ian Maclareu&#039;s &quot; Beside the Bonnie<br /> Brier Bush.&quot; They will be illustrated from draw-<br /> ings by Mr. William Hole.<br /> Sir Edward Russell is writing his memoirs,<br /> under the title &quot; That Reminds Me.&quot;<br /> Mrs. Tyndallis preparing a new and up-to-date<br /> edition of Professor Tyndall&#039;s work &quot; Hours of<br /> Exercise in the Alps,&quot; which was published in<br /> 1873-<br /> Mr. Richard Le Gallienne has been com-<br /> missioned by Mr. Lane to write a critical volume<br /> upon the works of Mr. Rudyard Kipling.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 265 (#277) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 265<br /> A story of provincial life, entitled &quot; The Green<br /> Field: a novel of the Midlands,&quot; by Mr. Neil<br /> Wynn- Williams, • will be published by Messrs.<br /> Chapman and Hall.<br /> Mr. Fred. J. Proctor, whose romance &quot;The<br /> Secret of Mark Pepys&quot; was issued by the<br /> National Press Agency, London, has agreed to<br /> supply a story for the same fiction bureau. The<br /> new plot is laid in England, and will run as a<br /> serial in thirteen instalments.<br /> The &quot; New English Dictionary&quot; is expected to<br /> be completed in 1910. An interesting article on<br /> this great enterprise appears in the March<br /> number of Good Words from the pen of Mr.<br /> L. W. Lillingston. Dr. Murray and his assis-<br /> tants have read more than 100,000 books expressly<br /> for compiling the Dictionary.<br /> Mr. George Allen will publish during this<br /> month a book of humour, written by Mr. H. A.<br /> Spurr, called &quot;A Cockney in Arcadia.&quot; The<br /> volume will be fully illustrated by Messrs.<br /> Hassall and Aldin. Ihe &quot;Cockney&quot; deals with<br /> life and character in Holderness, East Yorkshire<br /> .— an unexplored field for the writer and<br /> humourist.<br /> Messrs. W. Meals and Co., of Carlisle, are<br /> publishing a &quot;Flora of Cumberland,&quot; by Mr.<br /> William Hodgson, A.L.S. It contains a full list<br /> of the flowering plants and ferns to be found in<br /> the county, according to the latest and most<br /> reliable authorities. Mr. J. S. Goodchild, of<br /> H.M. Geological Survey, has contributed a<br /> chapter on the soils of Cumberland.<br /> Mr. Bloundelle-Burton&#039;s new novel, &quot; Fortune&#039;s<br /> my Foe,&quot; will be published by Pearson and Co.<br /> in London, and Appleton and Co. in New York,<br /> early in April. The story, although laid in<br /> England principally, contains an account of the<br /> Siege of Cartagena, in 1741, as well as a descrip-<br /> tion of the Battle of Quiberon, in 1759.<br /> Mr. James Milne has written a biography of<br /> Sir George Grey, which Mes.-rs. Chatto and<br /> Windus will have ready in May. The writer<br /> injoyed the friendship of Sir George Grey<br /> during the last four years of his life, and was<br /> made the repository of many reminiscerices.<br /> The book will be called &quot;The Romance of a<br /> Pro-Consul.&quot;<br /> Mr. H. G. Wells has written a story called<br /> &quot;Love and Mr. Lewisham,&quot; which is a study of<br /> an assistant schoolmaster who aspires to set the<br /> world straight and finds himself hampered by an<br /> early marriage.<br /> The Duchess of Sutherland has completed a<br /> socialistic novel.<br /> Mr. Ridrr Haggard&#039;s story &quot; The Wizard &quot; has<br /> been translated into Swahili for circulation<br /> among the natives of the East Coast of Africa,<br /> and his &quot;King Solomon&#039;s Mines&quot; has been<br /> embossed in Braille type by the permission of the<br /> author and the publishers, and is being published<br /> in Hora Jucunda, the magazine for the blind.<br /> &#039;* The Stranding of the White Rose,&quot; the Rev.<br /> C. Dudley Lampen&#039;s new story of adventure, will<br /> be published by the S.P.C.K. The book deals<br /> with the great lone north-west coast of Australia,<br /> the stranding of a tramp steamer thereon, and the<br /> extraordinary experiences of a salvage party sent<br /> in search of the vessel.<br /> Mr. George Somes Layard is writing the life of<br /> Mrs. Lynn Linton.<br /> Mr. John Davidson is engaged on a poetical<br /> play laid in the seventh century.<br /> Mr. H. C. Macphersou, editor of the Edin-<br /> burgh Evening News ai.d author of &quot;Adam<br /> Smith &quot; in the Famous Scots series, is writing a<br /> biography of Mr. Herbert Spencer.<br /> The collection of eighty-three letters of Sir<br /> Walter Scott were purchased at Sotheby&#039;s sale-<br /> rooms by Mr. William Brown, bookseller, Edin-<br /> burgh. At a recent sale of first editions a set of<br /> Scott fetched .£226; a set of Mr. Swinburne&#039;s<br /> works, .£64; and a set of Charles Reade, .£40.<br /> &quot;More Methodist Idylls&quot; is the title of Mr.<br /> Harry Lindsay&#039;s new volume which Mr. James<br /> Bowden is to publish immediately. &quot;Methodist<br /> Idylls &quot; has enjoyed a large sale, and is now in<br /> its third edition. At present Mr. Lindsay is at<br /> work on a new historical romance somewhat on<br /> the lines of his &quot;The Jacobite,&quot; which Messrs.<br /> Chatto and Windus published last year. The<br /> new romance is provisionally entitled &quot;The<br /> Puritan.&quot; In view of the fact that a novel<br /> called &quot;The Puritans&quot; was published only the<br /> other day, the above title, if selected, might cause<br /> confusion.<br /> A new volume entitled &quot; The Solitary Summer,&quot;<br /> by the author of &quot;Elizabeth and Her German<br /> Garden,&quot; will be published shortly by Messrs.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> &quot;Famous Ladies of the English Court&quot; is a<br /> work in which Mrs. Aubrey Richardson makes<br /> &quot;an honest endeavour to discern the truth&quot; about<br /> great Court ladies of history, alike in respect to<br /> their attainments and their shortcomings.<br /> X202 was paid by Mr. Quaritch at Sotheby&#039;s<br /> auction rooms, on March 1, for a first edition of<br /> John Forster&#039;s &quot; Life of Charles Dickens,&quot; extra<br /> illustrated with portraits, views, and autographs,<br /> printed 1872-4.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 266 (#278) ############################################<br /> <br /> 266<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Dr. T. Wemy&amp;s Fulton is the author of a work<br /> entitled &quot;The Sovereignty of the Sea,&quot; which<br /> Messrs. Blackwood will publish shortly.<br /> OBITUARY.<br /> THE Very Rev. Dr. Andrew K. H. Bovd,<br /> Minister of St. Andrews (&quot;A. K. H. B.&#039;&quot;),<br /> died at Bournemouth on March I. As an<br /> author he was best known for, among his thirty-<br /> two volumes, &quot;The Recreations of a Country<br /> Parson,&quot; &quot;The Graver Thoughts of a Country<br /> Parson,&quot; &quot;Twenty-five Years of St. Andrews,&quot;<br /> &quot;St. Andrews and Elsewhere,&quot; and &quot;The Last<br /> Years of St. Andrews.&quot; In the year 1890 Dr.<br /> Boyd was Moderator of the Church of Scotland.<br /> The circumstances of his death, it appears, were<br /> peculiarly sad. Dr. Boyd had been in failing<br /> health for some years; he was in the habit of<br /> taking sleeping draughts, and also used carbolic<br /> acid lotion for external application. On the night<br /> of his death he entered Mrs. Boyd&#039;s room, and,<br /> holding up the carbolic acid bottle, he said,<br /> &quot;Isn&#039;t this an awful thing? I have taken this in<br /> mistake.&quot; Dr. Boyd&#039;s genial qualities, added to<br /> his scholarly distinction, gained for him a wide<br /> popularity. He was in his seventy-fourth year,<br /> having been born at Auchinleck, Avrshire, in<br /> 1825.<br /> The late Miss Sara Sophia Hennell was a<br /> writer on Bishop Butler and other theological<br /> and metaphysical subjects, and an intimate friend<br /> of George Eliot. She died at Coventry in her<br /> eighty-sixth year.<br /> Mr. Andrew Macdonald, formerly editor, and<br /> latterly London representative, of the Calcutta<br /> Englishman, died after a few days&#039; illness. Mr.<br /> Macdonald had a large share, under Dr. Ross, in<br /> producing &quot; The Globe Encyclopaedia.&quot; He was<br /> in the prime of life, having been born in Edin-<br /> burgh in 1852.<br /> The Rev. A. B. Grosart, D.D., LL.D., who<br /> died in Dublin in his sixty-fourth year, was the<br /> author of several religious works, but is chiefly<br /> known as the industrious editor of reprints of<br /> English writers of the sixteenth and seven-<br /> teenth centuries. He was an authority on Robert<br /> Feiyusson, the Scottish poet, and also edited the<br /> Towneley Hall MSS., a famous collection of<br /> Jacobite ballads aud satires which appeared in<br /> 1877.<br /> Mr. Othniel Charles Marsh, the distinguished<br /> American naturalist and Professor of Palceon-<br /> tology at the University of Yale, died on March 18,<br /> of pneumonia.<br /> The death of Dr. Leitner, the most distin-<br /> guished scientist of our time, was announced in<br /> the papers of the 25th. He had not reached his<br /> 60th year. As a linguist, a traveller, and a<br /> student in Oriental archaeology, Dr. Leitner&#039;s<br /> loss is one which cannot be filled up.<br /> THE BOOKS 0? THE MONTH.<br /> [Feb. 23 to March 22—262 Books.]<br /> Adams. Gh B. European History: An Outline of its Development.<br /> 6,6 net. MacmilUn.<br /> Anonymous (author of &quot; Madam&#039;s Ward*&#039;). A Tear Between, l -<br /> Stevens.<br /> Anonymous. Mr. Dooley in Peace and in War. 2/- Rii-hards.<br /> Anonymous. Prinsloo of Prinsloosdorp. 3/6. Dunbar Brothers.<br /> Auonvmous (An American). History of South America. Tr. from<br /> iho Spanish by A. D. Jones. 10/6. Sonnensebein.<br /> Anonymous (G. &lt;i.). McGinty&#039;s Racehorse, and other Spotting<br /> Stories 4/6 net. B*dway.<br /> Anonymous (G G.) Riding. 4,6 net. lied way.<br /> Anonymous. Twentieth Century New Testament. Trans, into<br /> Modern English from Greek. Patt I.: Five Historical Books.<br /> 1/6. Mowbray House.<br /> Anonymous (miihor of &quot;The Heir of Redelyffa&quot;). Cameos from<br /> English History. 18thCentury. Ninth Series. 5/- Macmillan.<br /> Ansorge, W. J. Undpr the African Sun. 21/- net. Heinemann.<br /> Archer-Hind. R. D . and Hicks, R. D. (ed.). Greek and Latin Cam-<br /> bridge Compositions. 10/- Clay.<br /> Armstrong&#039;s (Lord) Work on Electric Movement In Air and Water;<br /> Supplement to. Smith and E.<br /> Armstrong, T. N. Guide to Practical Photography. 1/- Dawbarn.<br /> Athrrton. Gertrude. A Daughter of the Vine. 6/- Service.<br /> Audry, Mrs. W. Early Chapters in Science. 6/- Murray.<br /> Badenoch, L. N. Truo Tales of the Insects. 12/- Chapman.<br /> Bailey, L. H. The Pi inciples of Agriculture. 4/6. MaciniIIan.<br /> Balme, E. The Luck of of the Four-leaved Shamrock. 6/-<br /> Routledge.<br /> Fates, Arlo The Puritans. 6/- Constable.<br /> Beard sley, Aubrey. The Early Work of. With Preparatory Note by<br /> H, C. Marillier. 21/6 net. Lane.<br /> Peavan, A. H. James and Horace Smith. 6/- Hurst.<br /> Beesly, A. H. Life of Dan ton. 12/6. Lonpman.<br /> Belloc, Bflaire. Danton. A Study. 16/- Nisbet-<br /> Benson, E. F. The Capslna. 6,- Methnen.<br /> Berkley, G. Oswald Steele. 6/- Long.<br /> Bidder, George. By Southern Shore. Poems. £/- Constable.<br /> f ierce. Ambrose. Fantastic Fables. 3/6. Putnam.<br /> Blackball, R. H. Up-to-date Air Brake Catechism. 6/- net. Spon.<br /> Blatchford, A. N. Idylls of Old Greece. 2/6. Arrowsmith.<br /> Blissett, Nellie K. Brass. A Novel. 6/- Hutchinson.<br /> Bolton, W. H. O. (late R.A.). Organisation and Equipment. Maguiic.<br /> Bossuet, J. B. Devotion to the Blessed Virgin. 3/6. Longman.<br /> Boulvin, J. (tr. by B. Donkin). The Entropy Diagram and its Appli-<br /> cation. J,/&quot; Spon.<br /> Briggs, C. A. General Introduc.ion to Study of Holy Scripture.<br /> 12/- net Ularfc.<br /> Bright, W. The Law of Faith. 6- Wells Gardner.<br /> Broadley, A. Chats lo &#039;Cello Students. 2/6. .Sf/W Office.<br /> Brooks, W. K. The Foundations of Zoology. 10. 6 net Macmillan.<br /> Brown, A. M Elements of Alkaloidal .Etiology. 2 6 net. Kimpttn.<br /> Brown, P. Hume. History of Scotland. Vol. I. 6/- Clay.<br /> Brown, R. Researches into the Origin of the Primitive Constella-<br /> tions of the Greeks, Phoenicians, and Babylonians. Vol. I. 10.6.<br /> Williams and N.<br /> Bruce, A. B. The EpUtle to the Hebrews. 7/6. T. &amp; T. CI irk.<br /> Bruce, H. A. From the Ranks to the Peerage. 6/- Di^rbv.<br /> Bufton, J. Gwen Penrt A Welsh Idyll. 5/- Stvofe.<br /> Bullen, F. T. Idylls of the Sea, &amp;o. 6/- Richards,<br /> Burgln, G. B. The Hermits of Gray&#039;s Inn. 6/- Pearson<br /> Burleigh, Bennct. Khartoum Campaign 1*98. 12/- Cbap<br /> apman.<br /> Long.<br /> Burrard. W. D. A Weaver of Runes.<br /> Butler, Henry Montagu. University and other Sermons.<br /> Macmillan and Bowes.<br /> Caird, L. H. History of Corsica. &amp;!- Unwin.<br /> Cameron, Mrs. Lovctt. A Fair Fraud. 6/- Long-<br /> Campbell, D. H. Lectures on the Evolution of Plants. 4/6 ret,<br /> Macmillan.<br /> Carter, A. T. Outlines of English Legal History. 10 6. Butterwonh.<br /> Cavalier, A. R. In Northern India. Story of Mission Work. *, «.<br /> Partridge.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 267 (#279) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 267<br /> Church, A. J. Nlclas and the Sicilian Expedition.<br /> Clarke, A. Effects of the Factory System. 2/6.<br /> Clarke, Agnes Spencer. Seven Girls. 3/6.<br /> Cobban. J. Maclaren. Pnrsood by the Law. 6/-<br /> Cook, Theodore A. The Storv of Rouen. 4/6 net.<br /> Cooke, J. H. Life of King Alfred the Great. »d.<br /> Cooper, J. The Church, Catholic and National. 1/<br /> Conch, Lilian Qulller. The Marble King. 6d.<br /> Craddock, C. E. The Story of Old Fort Loudon. 6<br /> Cross, Mary F. Railway Sketches. 1/-<br /> 1/6.<br /> Seeley.<br /> Richards.<br /> Simpkln.<br /> Long.<br /> Dent.<br /> H. Burrows.<br /> HacLchose.<br /> Arrowsmith.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> White.<br /> D&#039;Annunzlo, G. (tr. by G. Harding). The Victim. 6/- Heinemann.<br /> Darling-Barker, S. The Trials of Mercy. 6/- Hutchinson.<br /> Daudet, L. (tr, by C. Kay) Alphonse Daudet. 8/- Low.<br /> Davenport, C. B. Experimental Morphology, Part 2. ft/- net.<br /> Macmillan.<br /> David, Mrs E. Funafuti, or Three Months on a Coal Island. 12/-<br /> Murray.<br /> Davies. D. H. The Cost of Municipal Trading. 2/- King.<br /> Dean, Mrs. Andrew. Cousin Ivo. 6/- Black.<br /> Deane, Mary. The Book of Dene, Deane, Adeane. A Genealogical<br /> History. lo/6 lift. Stock.<br /> Dimock, N. Our one Priest on High. 2,6 net. Stock.<br /> Dixon, Mrs. A. The True History of the Missouri Compromise and<br /> its Repeal. 16/- net. Gay.<br /> Dougall, Lily. The Mormon Prophet. 6/- Black.<br /> Douglas, R K. China. (&quot; Story of the Nations &quot;). 61- Unwin.<br /> Duff, SirM. E. Grant. Notes from a Diary kept chiefly in Southern<br /> India, 1881-1886. 18/- Murray.<br /> Dukes. C. Remedies for the Needless Injury to Children involved<br /> in the present system of School Education. 1/- Rivington.<br /> Dutt, Romeah. Maha-Bharata. 12/6 net. Dent.<br /> Eastlake, Charles (ed.). Pictures in the National Gallery.<br /> Hanfstaengl.<br /> EiIst, E. Measurement and Weighing. 2/6. Chapman.<br /> Elliot, D. G. Wild Fowl of North America. 10/- Suckling.<br /> Ellis, Btth, An English Girl&#039;s Flrat Impressions of Burmah. J/-<br /> Simpkln.<br /> Feasey, H. J. Westminster Abbey Historically Described. 105/ net.<br /> Bell.<br /> Findlater, Jane H. Rachel. A Novel. 67- Methuen.<br /> Findlater, Mary. Betty Musgrave. 6/-&#039; Methuen.<br /> Fire Prevention Committee, British. Fire Tests with Floors. II-<br /> B.F.P.C.<br /> Fisher. Jrhn (ed.). An illustrated Record of National Gold, Silver,<br /> and Bronze Medals, Designs, Models, Drawings, &lt;fcc. 10/6 net.<br /> Chapman.<br /> Fletcher, J. S. Frank Carisbroke&#039;s Stratagem, 1/6. Jarrold.<br /> Fraaer, Mrs. H. A Diplomatist&#039;s Wife In Japan. 32/- Hutchinson.<br /> Furlong, Alice. Roses and Rue. 2/6 net. Mathews.<br /> Gallon, Tom. The Kingdom or Hate. 6/- Hutchinson.<br /> Gates, L. E. Three Studies in Literature. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Gent, B. E. New Dictionary of the Terms, Ancient and Modem, of<br /> the Canting Crew in its several Tribes of Gypsies, Beggars, &amp;o<br /> 21/- Smilh and Kay.<br /> Gibson, E. C. S. The Book of Job (Oxford Commentaries). 6/-<br /> Moihuen.<br /> Glassford. D. T. The Pausing of Jesus. 1/- Mowbray.<br /> Godfrey, Elizabeth. A Stolen Idea. 6/- Jarrold.<br /> Goldmann, C. S. (ed.). Atlas of the Witwatersrand and other Gold-<br /> flVlds in the South African Republic. 15gs, Stanford.<br /> Goodwin. M. W.. and others. Historic New York. 12/6. Putnam,<br /> □ ore, Charles. St. Paul&#039;s Epistle to the Romans 3/6. Mnnay<br /> Gray, J. C. Biblical Museum. Vol. 3. Acts, Romans. 1/- net.<br /> Stock.<br /> Green, J. L. English Country Cottages. HI- Sural World Pub. Co.<br /> Green, W. H. General Introduction to the Old Testament. The<br /> Canon. 7/6. Murray.<br /> Grey, F. W. The Cure&#039;of St. Philippe. «/- Digby.<br /> Grierson, F. Modern Mysticism; and other Essays. 3/6, Allen.<br /> Griffith, G. Knaves of Diamonds. 3/6. Pearson.<br /> Gumpel, C G. The Plague in India. 2/- Sonnenseheln,<br /> Gwynn, Stephen, Tennyson. 2/6. Blackie.<br /> Haggard, H. R. Swallow. A Tale of the Great Trek. 6/- Longman.<br /> Hartley, Cecil. Merovech. 3/6. Sands.<br /> Huiton, the late R. H. Aspects of Religions and Scientific Thought.<br /> 5/- Macmillan.<br /> Hauptmann, G. (tr. by Mary Morison). The Weavers. 1/6.<br /> Heinemann.<br /> Hay, Mrs. A. Footprints : a Memoir of the late Alexander Hay, one<br /> of the Fathers and Early Colonists of South Australia. 3/6.<br /> Stock.<br /> Heddle, Ethel F. The Pride of the Family. 3/6. Bowden.<br /> Henderson, B. W. History of Merton College, Oxford. 5/-<br /> Roblnson.<br /> Hepworth, W. Information for Players, Owners, Dealers, and<br /> Makers of Bow Instruments. 2/6. W. Reeves.<br /> Herman, Henry. The Sword of Fate. 3/6. Greening.<br /> Hill. Headon. The Spies of the Wight. 3/6. Pearson.<br /> Hobbouse, Violet. Warp and Weft. 3/6. Skefflngton.<br /> Hodgkin, T. The Walla, Gates, and Aqueducts of Rnme. 3/6.<br /> Murray.<br /> Hodgson, W. Flora of Cumberland. 7/6. Carlisle: Meals.<br /> Hornung, E, W. The Amateur Cracksman. 6/- Methuen.<br /> How, W. W. Hannibal and the Great War between Rome and<br /> Carthage. 2/- Seeley.<br /> Hueppe, F. (tr. by Dr. E. 0. Jordan). The Principles of Bacteriology.<br /> 9/- Paul.<br /> Hunter, Sir W. W. A History of British India. Vol. I. 18/-<br /> Longman.<br /> Ingram. A. F. W. (Bishop or Stepney). Banners of the Christian<br /> Faith. 3/6. Wells Gardaer.<br /> Jackson, T. (ed. by E. I. Gregory). Commentaries upon Apostles<br /> Creed. 7,6. Whittaker.<br /> Johnston, J. China and Its Future 3/6. Stock,<br /> Johnston, Mary. The Old Dominion. 6/- Constable,<br /> Johnstone, C. L. Christian and Jewish Pilgrims to the Holy Land.<br /> 2/6. Church Newspaper Co.<br /> Jokal, M. (tr. by S. E. Boggs). The Nameless Castle. 6/- Jarrold.<br /> Jonee, H. A. The Triumph of the Philistines. 2/6. Macmillan.<br /> Jowett. the late Benjamin. Sermons, Biographical and Miscellaneous.<br /> 7/6. Murray.<br /> Kinross, A. An Opara and Lady Grasmere. 3/6. Arrowsmith.<br /> Knapp, W. I. Life, Writing*, and Correspondence of George<br /> Borrow. 32/- Murray.<br /> Lagerlof, Sclma (tr. by P. B. Flack). The Mlricles of Anti-Christ. 6/-<br /> Gay.<br /> Lambert, G. The President of Boravia. 3/6. Chatto.<br /> Leadbeater, C. W. Christian Creed. 1/6 net. Theosophical Pub. Co.<br /> Leaf, H. M. Internal Wiring of Buildings. 3/1. Constable.<br /> Le Breton, John. Unholy Matrimony. A Novel. 6/- Macqueen.<br /> Lees, It. J. Through the Mists: or, Leaves from the Autohiography<br /> of a Soul in Paradise. 57- net. Redway.<br /> Le Galllenne, R. Young Lives. 6/- Arrowsmith.<br /> Lelghton, Marie Connor and Robert. Michael Dred, Detective. 3/6.<br /> Richards.<br /> Leith-Adams. Mrs. Accessory After the Fact. 6/- Dlgby.<br /> Longfellow, W. P. P. The Column and the Arch. 10/6. Low.<br /> Longinus on the Sublime. The Grcek Text ed. after the Paris MS.,<br /> with Intro., Ac., by W. Rhys Roberts, ft/ Clay.<br /> Loria, A. (tr. by L. M. Keasbey). The Economic Foundations of<br /> Society. 3/6. Sonnenseheln.<br /> Low, W. H.,and Wyatt, A J. Intermediate Text Book of English<br /> Literature. Part II. (1660-1832). 3,6. Clive.<br /> Lowis, C. The Treasury-Officer&#039;s Wooing. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> Lysaght, S.R. One of the Grenvilles. 6/- Macmillan.<br /> McAl&#039;.i n, J. E. B. Principles of Book-keeping by Double Entry. !/-<br /> Methuen.<br /> McPoimac, Sir W. The Hunterian Oration, 1899. Smith and E.<br /> Mcintosh, W C. M. The Resources of the Sea as shown in tbe<br /> Sell miOc Experiments to test the Effects of Trawling, Ac., off the<br /> Scottish Shores. 15/- net. Clay.<br /> McLaren, W E. The Holy Priest. 4/6 net. Low.<br /> Macnherson, A. Gleanings from tbe Charter Chest at Cluny Castle.<br /> Nob. II. and III. Inverness: Xorthrnt Chronicle.<br /> Macpherson, H. C. Adam Smith (&quot;Famous Scota&quot;). 2,6. Ol-pham.<br /> Maeterlinck, M. Alladine and Palomldes: Interior: and The Death<br /> of Tintagiles: Three Little Dramas for Marionettes. 3,6 net.<br /> Duckwot th.<br /> Magnus, Lady Salvage. 1/- Nutt.<br /> Mahaffy, J. P. History of Egypt under the Ptolemaic Dynasty. 6/-<br /> Methuen.<br /> Maitland, J. A. F. The Musician&#039;s Pilgrimage. 5/- Smith and E,<br /> Malcolm, Lady; The Journal of. A Diary of St. Helena (1816-17).<br /> Hj- Innes.<br /> Mann. E. E. The Principles of Practical Cookery. 1/- Longman.<br /> Mark, H. T. An Outline of the History of Educational Theories in<br /> England. 3/- Sonnenschein.<br /> Marks, M. (ed.). The Cyclopredia of Home Arts. 7/6 net. Pearson.<br /> Marshall, W. Aarbert: The Story of a Pilgrimage. 3/6.<br /> Sonnenschein.<br /> Martin, Mrs. Herbert. Jock&#039;s Ward. 3/6. Pearson.<br /> Mathams, W. J. Comrades All. 2/- Chatt ,.<br /> Matthews, J. N. (ed.). Records of the County Borough of Cardiff.<br /> Vol. I. Stock.<br /> Mends, B. S. Life of Admiral Sir William Robert Mends. 16/-<br /> Murray.<br /> Mengor, A. (tr. by M. E. Tannor). Right to the Whole Produce of<br /> Labour. 6,&#039;- net. Macmillan.<br /> Miall, A. Bernard. Poems. 5/- net. Lane.<br /> Milne. F. A. (ed.). Gentleman/ Magazine Library: English Topo-<br /> graphy, Part 2.—Staffordshire and Suffolk. 10/6. Stock.<br /> Milne, J. G. History of Egypt under Roman Rule. 6/- Methuen.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 268 (#280) ############################################<br /> <br /> 268<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> Monck, W. H. S. Introduction to Stellar Astronomy. 3/6.<br /> Hutchinson.<br /> Mirse, C. R. Life at Twanty. 6/- Hiinemim.<br /> Moscbeles, Felix. Fragments of an Autohiography. 10/6. NistHt.<br /> Mrdzoric, Milena (tr. by Mrs. Waugh). Salam: Sketches and Tales<br /> of Bosnian Life. 6/- Jarrold.<br /> Munro, J. Story of tha British Race. I,&#039;- Newnes.<br /> Nazarbek, A. (tr.byMra. L. M. Elton). Through the Storm : Pictures<br /> of Life in Armani*. 6/-<br /> Newman, E. A Study of Wagner. 12/-<br /> Nisbet Hume. 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328	https://historysoa.com/items/show/328	The Author, Vol. 09 Issue 12 (May 1899)	<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=49&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=%3Cem%3EThe+Author%3C%2Fem%3E%2C+Vol.+09+Issue+12+%28May+1899%29"><em>The Author</em>, Vol. 09 Issue 12 (May 1899)</a>			<a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101063829988</a>								<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Publication">Publication</a>	1899-05-01-The-Author-9-12					269–288																		<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=89&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=9">9</a>											<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=76&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=1899-05-01">1899-05-01</a>							12			18990501	XT be Hutbot\<br /> (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.)<br /> CONDUCTED BY WALTER BESANT.<br /> Vol. IX.—No. 12.] MAT 1, 1899. [Price Sixpence.<br /> For the Opinions expressed in papers that are<br /> signed or initialled the Authors alone are<br /> responsible. None of the papers or para-<br /> graphs must be taken as expressing the<br /> collective opinions of the Committee unless<br /> they are officially signed by G. Herbert<br /> Thring, Sec.<br /> THE Secretary of the Society begs to give notice that all<br /> remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and<br /> requests that all members not receiving an answer to<br /> important communications within two days will write to him<br /> without delay. AU remittances should be crossed Union<br /> Bank of London, Chancery-lane, or be sent by registered<br /> letter only. il<br /> Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on<br /> all subjects connected with literature, but on no other sub-<br /> jects whatever. Articles which cannot be accepted are<br /> returned if stamps for the purpose accompany the MSS.<br /> GENERAL MEMORANDA.<br /> FOB some years it has been the practice to insert, in<br /> every number of The Author, certain &quot; General Con-<br /> siderations,&quot; Warnings, Notices, &amp;c, for the guidance<br /> of HtB reader. It has been objected as regards these<br /> warnings that the tricks or frauds against which they are<br /> directed cannot all be guarded against, for obvious reasons.<br /> It is, however, well that they should be borne in mind, and<br /> if any publisher refuses a clause of precaution he simply<br /> reveals his true character, and should be left to carry on<br /> his business in his own way.<br /> Let us, however, draw up a few of the rules to be<br /> observed in an agreement. There are three methods of<br /> dealing with literary property:—<br /> I. That of selling it outright.<br /> This is in some respects the most satisfactory, if a proper<br /> price can be obtained. But the transaction should be<br /> managed by a competent agent.<br /> II. A profit-sharing agreement.<br /> In this case the following rule ■ should be attended to:<br /> (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro-<br /> duction forms a part.<br /> (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the<br /> profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements<br /> ▼OL. IX.<br /> in his own organs: or by charging exchange advertise-<br /> ments.<br /> (3.) Not to allow a special charge for &quot; office expenses,&quot;<br /> unless the same allowance is made to the author.<br /> (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental<br /> rights.<br /> (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights.<br /> (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher.<br /> As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or<br /> doctor!<br /> (7.) To stamp the agreement.<br /> III. The royalty system.<br /> In this system, which has opened the door to a most<br /> amazing amount of overreaching and trading on the<br /> author&#039;s ignorance, it is above all things necessary to know<br /> what the proposed royalty means to both sides. It is now<br /> possible for an author to ascertain approximately and very<br /> nearly the truth. From time to time the very important<br /> figures connected with royalties are published in The Author.<br /> Readers can also work out the figures themselves from the<br /> &quot;Cost of Production.&quot; Let no one, not even the youngest<br /> writer, sign a royalty agreement without finding out what<br /> it gives the publisher as well as himself.<br /> It has been objected that these precautions presuppose a<br /> great success for the book, and that very few books indeed<br /> attain to this great success. That is quite true: but there is<br /> always this uncertainty of literary property that, although<br /> the works of a great many authors carry with them no risk<br /> at all, and although of a great many it is known within a few<br /> copies what will be their minimum circulation, it is not<br /> known what will be their maximum. Therefore every<br /> author, for every book, should arrange on the chance of a<br /> success which will not, probably, come at all; bnt which<br /> may come.<br /> The four points which the Society has always demanded<br /> from the outset are:—<br /> (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement<br /> means.<br /> (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong<br /> to the author. We are advised that this is a right, in the<br /> nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or<br /> withheld.<br /> (3.) That there shall be no seoret profits.<br /> (4.) That nothing shall be charged which has not been<br /> actually paid—for instance, that there shall be no charge for<br /> advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own organs and none for<br /> exchanged advertisements, and that all discounts shall be<br /> duly entered.<br /> If these points are carefully looked after, the author may<br /> rest pretty well assured that he is in right hands. At the<br /> same time he will do well to send his agreement to the<br /> secretary before he signs it.<br /> F F 2<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 270 (#282) ############################################<br /> <br /> 270 THE AUTHOR.<br /> HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY.<br /> I. Ii^ VERY member has a right to ask for and to receive<br /> JjJ advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub-<br /> lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his<br /> business or the administration of his property. If, in the<br /> opinion of the Committee and the Solicitors of the Society,<br /> the advice sought is such as can be given best by a solicitor,<br /> the member has a right to an opinion from the Society&#039;s<br /> solicitors. If the oase is such that Counsel&#039;s opinion is<br /> desirable, the Committee will obtain for him Counsel&#039;s<br /> opinion. All this without any cost to the member.<br /> 2. Remember that questions connected with copyright<br /> and publisher&#039;s agreements do not generally fall within the<br /> experience of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple<br /> to use the Society first—our solicitors are continually<br /> engaged upon such questions for us.<br /> 3. Send to the office copies of past agreements and past<br /> accounts with the loan of the books represented. This is in<br /> order to ascertain what has been the nature of your agree-<br /> ments, and the results to author and publisher respectively<br /> so far. The Secretary will always be glad to have any<br /> agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. The infor-<br /> mation thus obtained may prove invaluable.<br /> 4. If the examination of your previous business trans-<br /> actions by the Secretary proves unfavourable, you should<br /> take advice as to a change of publishers.<br /> 5. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the pro-<br /> posed document to the Sooiety for examination.<br /> 6. The Society is acquainted with the methods, and—in<br /> the oase of fraudulent houses—the tricks of every publish-<br /> ing firm in the country.<br /> 7. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you<br /> are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are<br /> reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing<br /> the best interests of literature in promoting the indepen-<br /> dence of the writer.<br /> 8. Send to the Editor of The Author notes of everything<br /> important to literature that you may hear or meet with.<br /> 9. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of<br /> members&#039; agreements and their preservation in a fireproof<br /> safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as con-<br /> fidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who<br /> will keep the key of the safe. The Sooiety now offers:—(1)<br /> To read and advise upon agreements and publishers. (2) To<br /> stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon<br /> them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments<br /> due according to agreements.<br /> NOTICES.<br /> THE Editor of The Author begs to remind members of the<br /> Society that, although the paper is sent to them free<br /> of charge, the oost of producing it would be a very<br /> heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great<br /> many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest<br /> 6s. 6d. subscription for the year.<br /> Communications for The Author should reach the Editor<br /> not later than the 21st of each month.<br /> All persons engaged in literary work of any kind,<br /> whether members of the Society or not, are invited to<br /> communicate to the Editor any points connected with then-<br /> work which it would be advisable in the general interest to<br /> publish.<br /> Members and others who wish their MSS. read are<br /> requested not to send them to the Office without previously<br /> communicating with the Secretary. The utmost practicable<br /> despatch is aimed at, and MSS. are read in the order in<br /> which they are received. It must also be distinctly under-<br /> stood that the Society does not, under any oircumstanoea,<br /> undertake the publication of MSS.<br /> The present location of the Authors&#039; Club is at 3, White-<br /> hall-court, Charing Cross. Address the Secretary for<br /> information, rules of admission, &amp;c.<br /> Will members take the trouble to ascertain whether they<br /> have paid their subscriptions for the year? If they will do<br /> this, and remit the amount, if still unpaid, or a banker&#039;s<br /> order, it will greatly assist the Secretary, and save him the<br /> trouble of sending out a reminder<br /> Members are most earnestly entreated to attend to the<br /> following warning. It is a most foolish and may be a<br /> most disastrous thing to enter into an agreement binding<br /> for a term of years. Let them ask themselves if they<br /> would give a solicitor the collection of their rents for<br /> five years to come, whatever his conduct, whether he<br /> was honest or dishonest? Of course they would not.<br /> Why then hesitate for a moment when they are asked to<br /> sign themselves into literary bondage for three or five<br /> years?<br /> &quot;Those who possess the &#039;Cost of Production&#039; are<br /> requested to note that the cost of binding has advanced 15<br /> per cent.&quot; This clause was inserted three or four years ago.<br /> Estimates have, however, recently been obtained which show<br /> that the figures in the book may be relied on as nearly<br /> correct: as near as is possible.<br /> Some remarks have been made upon the amount charged<br /> in the &quot; Cost of Production&quot; for advertising. Of oourse, we<br /> have not included any sums which may be charged for<br /> inserting advertisements in the publisher&#039;s own magazines,<br /> or in other magazines by exchange. As agreements too<br /> often go, there is nothing to prevent the publisher from<br /> sweeping the whole profits of a book into his own pocket,<br /> by inserting any number of advertisements in his own<br /> magazines, and by exchanging with others. Some there are<br /> who call this a form of fraud; it is not known what those<br /> who practise this method of swelling their own profits call it.<br /> LITERARY PROPERTY.<br /> I. The Copyright Bill.<br /> ON Monday, April 24, Lord Monkswell moved<br /> the second reading of the Bill in the House<br /> of Lords. He related the action of the<br /> Society of Authors in preparing the Bill which<br /> he had himself introduced into the House of<br /> Lords. The death of Lord Herschell was a great<br /> loss to copyright reform, because he had brought<br /> in a large consolidating measure of literary and.<br /> artistic copyright. The Bill was referred, together<br /> with his own, to a Select Committee of Lords.<br /> The Committee held a great many meetings, but<br /> had not completed the evidence. Meanwhile,<br /> another Bill had been prepared by Lord Thring<br /> dealing with literary copyright. This Bill which<br /> he now proposed to read a second time fixed this<br /> term of copyright to the life of the author and<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 271 (#283) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 271<br /> thirty years after death: the present law being a<br /> term of the author&#039;s life and seven years after, or<br /> forty-two years, whichever should be longer.<br /> The new Bill provided for the dramatisation,<br /> translation, or abridgment of novels: it gave<br /> authors of magazine articles copyright after two<br /> years from the publication of the articles. It<br /> gave copyright in lectures; it gave newspapers<br /> copyright in news for twelve hours after publica-<br /> tion. There were other points which would be<br /> considered in the discussion of the Bill.<br /> It was read a second time and referred to a<br /> Select Committee. iir<br /> II. Walter Savage Landor on Copyright.<br /> A correspondent of the Standard has unearthed<br /> a petition presented to Parliament by Walter<br /> Savage Landor, and published in the Examiner<br /> of April 7, 1839. It is as follows:—<br /> That your petitioner would represent to your Honourable<br /> House his strong persuasion that no property is bo entirely,<br /> and purely, and religiously a man&#039;s own as what comes to<br /> him immediately from God, without intervention or partici-<br /> pation. It is the eternal gift of an Eternal Being; and to<br /> interfere in any way with its benefits and blessings appears<br /> to your petitioner unbecoming and unjust.<br /> Your petitioner therefore humbly submits to your<br /> Honourable House that no Legislature has a right to<br /> confine its advantages to a thousand or ten thousand years,<br /> or to give them away to any person or pereons whatsoever, to<br /> the detriment of an author&#039;s heirs, after any number of ages.<br /> And your petitioner offers the less reluctantly these<br /> observations to your Honourable House, since he himself<br /> proposes no advantages to his descendants from any of his<br /> literary works, all of whioh he has consigned and left in<br /> perpetuity to the discretion of a learned friend.<br /> III.—Author&#039;s Corrections.<br /> As, after many wrestles, T have successfully<br /> bound the &quot;correction&quot; fiend, perhaps the method<br /> evolved may be useful to your readers.<br /> 1. Alter the agreement, liefore signing, to<br /> &quot;author&#039;s alterations &quot;; corrections may include<br /> printers&#039; errors.<br /> 2. Require a free allowance of alterations per<br /> sheet, not an allowance of shillings but of so<br /> many words. I generally ask for about one in<br /> 300. Be reasonable, and guarantee that you will<br /> never overrun a page, and promise to break lines<br /> as bttle as possible. You can always save a page<br /> whole, and seldom break more than two lines, if<br /> careful in arranging. I am referring to detailed<br /> scientific works in saying this; imaginative<br /> writers may find more difficulty.<br /> 3. Correct and alter in pencil freely on one copy<br /> of proof. Then count words and prune if needful<br /> when inking in on the other copy for the printer.<br /> If you expect trouble use red ink for all your own<br /> alterations, and indorse each sheet with number<br /> of your alterations on it.<br /> 4. And now, perhaps, you have exceeded your<br /> allowance at the end of the work. And if you<br /> have but a few words more against you than<br /> agreed on, you will find probably .£5 for correc-<br /> tions put down. Look out the worst page of all;<br /> and see if deducting your alterations there will<br /> bring you within the agreed limit; if not, take<br /> the next worst for alterations also, and so on,<br /> until deducting certain pages squares the agreed<br /> allowance. Then offer to pay for the entire<br /> re-setting of those pages. It is a magnificent<br /> offer; you pay for fifty times the work involved,<br /> and yet it binds the fiend so that he cannot do<br /> entirely as he chooses.<br /> If in course of correcting you want much<br /> alteration in a page—more than a line or two—<br /> dash out the whole page and mark it &quot; Re-set<br /> this page and charge to author.&quot; Then it is<br /> impossible to charge you for more than a few<br /> shillings for setting up one page. This method<br /> answers both with publishers and in direct<br /> contracts with printers.<br /> There is another thing to be said. Accustom<br /> yourself to write clean, without needing to alter<br /> MS., and then you are less liable to need altera-<br /> tions in proof. I seldom alter more than one<br /> word in 200 in MS. To do this, begin by a<br /> rule of never trying to write in bad con-<br /> ditions of temperament or surrounding. If<br /> distracted, cold, weary, or dull, you will never<br /> write a clean page, and the correction fiend will<br /> triumph. Often Bitten.<br /> I am much obliged by the Editor&#039;s note to my<br /> query on author&#039;s corrections. I have kept the<br /> first proofs, as advised by him. My difficulty is<br /> this: Printers often put small letters where<br /> capitals are distinctly indicated in the MS.<br /> They run on where a fresh paragraph is obvious.<br /> Per contra, they leave spaces sometimes when<br /> the directions are to save room. Sometimes the<br /> proof alters the meaning and effect of a para-<br /> graph. This may necessitate an interlineation,<br /> and dislocate a whole page, which, as the Editor<br /> says, takes time, and causes much additional<br /> expense. But must an author be charged with<br /> all this, for at the rates given it mounts up enor-<br /> mously? If an author interlineates owing to<br /> omissions, or erases an unsatisfactory line (as it<br /> seems to him) on appearing in print, I under-<br /> stand he must pay for the luxury, but should he<br /> pay for misplaced or misdivided words, &amp;c.?<br /> A New Member.<br /> IV.—No Author&#039;s Corrections.<br /> You have often pointed out how the charge<br /> made for author&#039;s corrections can be kept down<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 272 (#284) ############################################<br /> <br /> 272<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> by having the MS. type-written. A novel of<br /> mine, &quot;The Passing of Prince Rozan,&quot; had to be<br /> &quot;set&quot; and printed in America. To get proofs<br /> over here, revise and return them, would have<br /> caused such a serious delay that I decided to do<br /> without proofs. My MS. was type-written. I<br /> revised it with the greatest care. I further in-<br /> serted a clause in my agreement that the author<br /> would not require proofs, and that the publishers<br /> (Messrs. Putnam&#039;s Sons) would use their best<br /> endeavours to see that all printer&#039;s errors were<br /> corrected. I am quite satisfied with the result,<br /> and have been saved much trouble and expense.<br /> It is significant that the publishers made objec-<br /> tion to the clause in the agreement, suggesting<br /> that they might have to charge for corrections<br /> made by their reader; but the claim was inserted<br /> and agreed to. John Bickerdyke.<br /> V.—Infringement of Copyright.<br /> On March 29 last, before Mr. Justice Wills and<br /> a common jury, in the Queen&#039;s Bench Division,<br /> was heard the case of Miln v. Ballin. Mrs.<br /> Miln is an American author and journalist who<br /> has travelled a great deal, and has written books<br /> of travel and papers and essays on various<br /> subjects in magazines and papers. Among other<br /> contributions was a series of papers on children<br /> of various countries which she contributed to a<br /> journal called Madame, reserving the copyright.<br /> The defendant owned a paper called Baby, and<br /> had reproduced in its columns paragraphs—some<br /> thirty in all—verbatim from the plaintiffs essays<br /> in Madame. The witnesses for the plaintiff<br /> besides herself were Mr. T. P. O&#039;Connor, Mr.<br /> John Murray, and Mr. F. W. Slater of Harper<br /> and Brothers. The case was practically without<br /> defence, except the plea that very little harm was<br /> done, if any, to the prospects of the plaintiff&#039;s<br /> book. Mr. Justice Wills, however, thought that<br /> a very considerable wrong had been done to the<br /> plaiutiff. The jury assessed the damages at<br /> .£250.<br /> As to the case itself, their could be no doubt of<br /> the result. The amount of damages granted to<br /> the plaintiff must be taken to represent more a<br /> penalty for wrong-doing than an attempt to<br /> estimate the damage done to the forthcoming<br /> book. People who reproduce literary property<br /> without the author&#039;s permission must learn that<br /> they cannot be allowed to help themselves. No<br /> one will ever be able to learn how far the<br /> property has been injured, but property must be<br /> respected. Therefore the result of the action is<br /> quite satisfactory.<br /> VI.—Harrison v. Bloxam.<br /> (In the Westminster County Court of Middlesex,<br /> March 1, 1899.)<br /> Messrs. Haynes and Claremont of 4, Blooms-<br /> bury-square, appeared for the plaintiffs. Defen-<br /> dant was represented by counsel, Mr. C. B.<br /> Marriott (instructed by Messrs. Field, Roscoe,<br /> and Co., 36, Lincoln&#039;s-inn Fields), acting on<br /> behalf of the Society of Authors.<br /> Mr. Marriott stated that his client wasagraduate<br /> of London University and a Research Chemist<br /> carrying out experiments at the Davy-Faraday<br /> Laboratory of the Royal Institution. Mr.<br /> Bloxam was a candidate for the D.Sc. degree of<br /> the University of London, and was required to<br /> present a printed thesis showing the results of his<br /> experimental work. Mr. Bloxam obtained from<br /> Messrs. Harrison an estimate for printing<br /> 100 copies demy 8vo. 32 pp. in paper wrapper,<br /> amounting to £j 2s. Mr. Bloxam&#039;s manu-<br /> script printed out to forty-eight pages, and<br /> for this work an account was sent in by Messrs.<br /> Harrison amounting to .£15 4*. 6d. Mr. Bloxam<br /> considered the charge made to be excessive in<br /> view of the original estimate, and entered into<br /> correspondence with Messrs. Harrison. Mr.<br /> Bloxam was perfectly willing to pay a reasonable<br /> sum, and by letter suggested a meeting for settle-<br /> ment of the amount due. Messrs. Harrison<br /> replied by issuing a County Court summons.<br /> Mr. Bloxam then paid into court £10 10s. and<br /> share of costs as being sufficient to discharge the<br /> debt.<br /> The plaintiff (Mr. Harrison) was called, and<br /> denied that the sum charged was excessive. The<br /> charge was madf? for a pamphlet of 56 pp.,<br /> although defendant recognised only 48 pp. of<br /> printed matter. Plaintiff stated that blank pages<br /> and titles were charged as printed matter, but he<br /> had not warned defendant of this practice.<br /> Plaintiff also admitted that extra cost was<br /> entailed by sending out proofs in slip form, and<br /> that defendant was not consulted on this ques-<br /> tion, and was left in ignorance of any extra cost<br /> thus involved.<br /> Counsel objected on behalf of defendant that no<br /> details of extra charges had been submitted by<br /> the plaintiff, and that defendant had been allowed<br /> to incur extra charges without being warned.<br /> Counsel quoted an estimate by Messrs. Richard<br /> Clay and Sons to print for ii0 14*. 100 copies<br /> of the pamphlet, for which plaintiff claimed<br /> .£15 4*. 6d. Defendant produced manuscript and<br /> proofs, and, on examination by plaintiff and the<br /> judge, the MSS. and proofs were admitted to be<br /> legible and reasonably free from erasure or altera-<br /> tion.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 273 (#285) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 273<br /> The judge was of opinion that the charge made<br /> by the plaintiff was too great in proportion to the<br /> estimate given, and, in addition, that if extra<br /> costs were involved in printing and revision, the<br /> defendant should have been warned of such extra<br /> costs.<br /> Judgment was given for the plaintiff for .£13.<br /> VII.—Yeatman v. The Saturday Review.<br /> The case of Yeatman v. Harris and Others<br /> came before the Court of Appeal on April 12 and<br /> 13, on the application of the plaintiff for judg-<br /> ment or new trial on appeal from the verdict and<br /> judgment of Feb. 15 last, at a trial before the<br /> Lord Chief Justice and a special jury in the<br /> Queen&#039;s Bench Division. In this case the plaintiff,<br /> Mr. John Pym Yeatman, barrister and author,<br /> claimed to recover from Mr. Harris, as the former<br /> editor of the Saturday Review, and from Mr.<br /> F. W. Sabin, as the publisher, and from Messrs.<br /> Spottiswoode, as the printers of the journal,<br /> damages for alleged libels published in 1874,<br /> 1896, 1897, and 1898. The first alleged libel was<br /> in the criticism of a book written by the plaintiff,<br /> called &quot; A History of the Common Law of Great<br /> Britain and Gaul,&quot; one of the statements being:<br /> &quot;Mr. Yeatman would most likely, under any cir-<br /> cumstances, have written nonsense, if he wrote<br /> anything at all. His book is wild and worthless.&quot;<br /> The next libel arose on the publication of a book<br /> in 1896—&quot;The Gentle Shakespeare: a Vindica-<br /> tion &quot;—which the Saturday Review described as<br /> &quot;a rival in absurdity to the cryptogram of Mr.<br /> Ignatius Donelly,&quot; as &quot;miserable twaddle,&quot; and<br /> &quot;an insult to literature.&quot; The third libel (which<br /> Mr. Yeatman said was the most serious, and<br /> injured him in his profession of a barrister)<br /> appeared on May 8, 1897, stating: &quot;The Bar had<br /> its annual general meeting on Tuesday, and we<br /> notice without much surprise that those gather-<br /> ings at Lincoln&#039;s-inn are becoming more and more<br /> a kind of debating society for the cranks of the<br /> profession.&quot; The jury found that none of the<br /> articles were libellous or exceeded the limit of fair<br /> criticism, and judgment was entered accordingly;<br /> hence the present appeal. In giving judgment,<br /> Lord Justice Smith (Lords Justices Collins and<br /> Romer concurring) said there was no ground for<br /> granting the application, and the appeal would be<br /> dismissed with costs.<br /> VIII.—Musical Copyright.<br /> (Chancery Division—Before Mr. Justice Stirling.)<br /> BOOSEY V. WHIGHT.<br /> This case raised a novel and interesting point<br /> under the Musical Copyright Act. Mr. Butcher,<br /> Q.C., and Mr. Scrutton apppeared for the plain-<br /> tiffs, and Mr. Cutler, Q.C., Mr. Moulton, Q.C.,<br /> Mr. Terrell, Q.C., and Mr. Eustace Smith repre-<br /> sented the defendants.<br /> The plaintiffs are well-known music publishers,<br /> and they ask for an injunction to restrain the<br /> defendants from infringing their copyright in<br /> three songs, &quot;My Lady&#039;s Bower,&quot; &quot;The Better<br /> Land,&quot; and &quot; The Holy City.&quot; The defendants are<br /> the sellers of a musical instrument called the<br /> &quot;jEolian,&quot; which is played by means of wind<br /> admitted to pipes or reeds through perforations<br /> in sheets of paper. The plaintiffs&#039; case was that<br /> these perforated sheets were, in fact, records of<br /> the musical compositions in question, by means<br /> of which the music could be reproduced with a<br /> certain amount of human intelligence, and that<br /> they constituted an infringement of their copy-<br /> right in such compositions. The case turned to<br /> a considerable extent upon the construction of<br /> the Copyright Act, 1842. That Act gives pro-<br /> tection to copyright in books, and by its interpre-<br /> tation clause defines a book as meaning and<br /> including {inter alia) &quot;a sheet of music&quot;;<br /> and the question was whether the perforated<br /> rolls of paper used by the defendants in their<br /> instruments were &quot;sheets of music&quot; within<br /> the Act. The defendants had obtained the<br /> evidence of various musicians and others to prove<br /> that the perforated rolls could not be read as<br /> music, and conveyed to the minds of the<br /> witnesses no impression of music.<br /> The judge, having heard the arguments at<br /> length some weeks ago, reserved his judgment,<br /> which he now delivered. Having dealt with the<br /> facts of the case, and the evidence adduced at the<br /> trial, he said the question turned upon the con-<br /> struction to be put upon the Copyright Act,<br /> 1842, and the point was whether these perforated<br /> sheets of paper were &quot;sheets of music&quot; within<br /> the meaning of that Act. Although he was not<br /> prepared to say that the perforation alone<br /> amounted to an infringement, he came to the<br /> conclusion that inasmuch as the words intimat-<br /> ing the time, and the sign denoting the key,<br /> appeared on the paper as on plaintiffs&#039; music, the<br /> sheets, taken as a whole, amounted to an infringe-<br /> ment. He would, therefore, grant an injunction<br /> restraining the defendants from continuing to<br /> publish these sheets in their present form, viz.,<br /> with any words or signs which appeared on the<br /> plaintiffs&#039; music. With regard to the perfora-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 274 (#286) ############################################<br /> <br /> 274<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> tion alone he did not say whether that was an<br /> infringement.<br /> Judgment accordingly.<br /> IX.—Agreements, with Comments.<br /> In all cases in which publishers&#039; agreements<br /> are printed and commented on in The Author a<br /> copy of the paper will henceforth be sent to the<br /> firm concerned, accompanied by a letter drawing<br /> their attention to the comments and offering them<br /> the opportunity of making any reply in The Author<br /> in case they should desire to do so.<br /> Agreement.<br /> Agreement made this day of between<br /> of (hereinafter called the &quot;Author &quot;) of<br /> the one part, and Messrs. of (hereinafter<br /> called the &quot; Publishers &quot;) of the other part, as follows:<br /> 1. The author agrees to transfer to the publishers all his<br /> copyrights and his other rights in a novel written by him and<br /> at present entitled , and the publishers agree to pub-<br /> lish the said novel in one volume form, and to use their<br /> best endeavours to make the same successful.<br /> 2. All expenses of production, advertising, and setting the<br /> ■aid novel shall be undertaken by the publishers, who shall<br /> be entitled to sell 500 copies of the said novel for their own<br /> benefit and without accounting therefor. Subject thereto<br /> the publishers agree to pay to the author one-half of all<br /> profits which they may derive from the publication and sale<br /> of the said book after deducting all expenses incurred in<br /> producing, publishing, selling, and advertising the same. It<br /> is agreed that as part of the expenses as aforesaid the pub-<br /> lishers shall be at liberty to include 5 per cent on the<br /> income from sales in lieu of specific charges for carriages,<br /> bookings, insurance, postages, travelling expenses, and<br /> establishment expenses for which no other charge is to be<br /> made.<br /> 3. The publishers shall have discretion as to the number<br /> and destination of presentation copies for the Press or other-<br /> wise, with a view of helping sales, but they shall on publi-<br /> cation of the book deliver to the author six presentation<br /> copies.<br /> 4. The publishers shall make up accounts to Dec. 31 and<br /> June 30 in each year, and settle the same with the author<br /> within three months after tboee dates.<br /> 5. The author undertakes to keep the publishers indem-<br /> nified against all actions or claims which may be brought or<br /> made against or upon them by reason of the said novel con-<br /> taining any libellous or slanderous matter.<br /> 6. The author agrees to give the publishers the first offer<br /> of the next long novel to be written by him, and which shall<br /> exceed 60,000 words in length, on the same terms as are<br /> contained in this agreement, with the exception that the<br /> publishers shall not in the case of such new book be entitled<br /> to 500 or any free copies (except presentation copies for the<br /> author and review and for influencing sales). The said offer<br /> shall be made by the author submitting the MS. of the said<br /> novel to the publishers, and allowing them one month after<br /> such submission within which to accept or decline the<br /> same.<br /> The first clause in this agreement is entirely to<br /> the disadvantage of the author. No author<br /> should under any circumstances transfer the<br /> copyright in a book to a publisher. In the case<br /> of technical books, scientific books, scholastic<br /> books, such transfer is quite disastrous. The<br /> agreement above quoted, however, is for the pub-<br /> lication of a work of fiction. If the author is<br /> ill-advised enough to transfer the copyright he<br /> should protect himself against the publication of<br /> the book in an altered form, against the sup-<br /> pression of his book, and against the suppression<br /> of his name. These are all-important points. In<br /> the first clause the publishers agree to publish<br /> the said novel, but do not undertake to do so by<br /> any specified time, and as they hold the copyright<br /> they are practically masters of the situation. It<br /> may be argued that if a publisher holds the copy-<br /> right of a book he would be a fool if he did not<br /> publish it, but cases have occurred where a pub-<br /> lisher holding the copyright has delayed publi-<br /> cation for various reasons for a couple of years.<br /> During this time the author naturally is unwilling<br /> to bring out another book to interfere with the<br /> copyright that the publisher holds. Clause 1,<br /> therefore, is an exceedingly bad clause from the<br /> author&#039;s point of view. (1.) As he transfers<br /> his copyright. (2.) As the publisher is not<br /> bound to produce the book by a certain date;<br /> and (3.) he is not bound to produce more than<br /> 500 copies, and therefore it is possible that the<br /> author might obtain no profit at all (see next<br /> clause).<br /> Clause 2 is an exceedingly bad clause from an<br /> author&#039;s point of view, whether the book is a<br /> first book or otherwise. It is sometimes the case<br /> that in a royalty agreement the publisher with-<br /> holds the payment of royalty till after the sale<br /> of 500 copies and then gives a proportionately<br /> high royalty to the author. It is sometimes<br /> worth the author&#039;s while to accept an agreement<br /> of this kind rather than not have his book<br /> published at all. The publisher, however, in the<br /> present agreement has a profit-sharing arrange-<br /> ment with the result that not only does he get<br /> 500 copies free to himself, but he gets half the<br /> cost of production of this 500 copies also paid<br /> for by the author. So much for the 500 to the<br /> publisher. It is only necessary to repeat what<br /> has so often and so urgently been put forward in<br /> The Author: that a half-profit arrangement under<br /> any circumstances is a bad one for the author, as<br /> inclined to lead to disputes and dissatisfaction<br /> from the complicated statements of accounts and<br /> from the small division of profits (if any) that<br /> generally accrues. The latter part of the same<br /> clause is against the author, as if the publisher<br /> is entitled to charge a percentage to cover his<br /> expenses the author ought to be entitled to make<br /> the same charge. Finally, with regard to clause 2,<br /> the author has no chance of checking beforehand<br /> the probable cost of production and no control<br /> whatever over the amount to be spent on adver-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 275 (#287) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 275<br /> tising or where these advertisements are to<br /> appear. This simple reliance of the author on the<br /> arrangement has been mentioned over and over<br /> again and must still be insisted upon.<br /> Clause 3 is also bad as far as the permission<br /> given to the publisher is concerned. The number<br /> of free copies should be limited.<br /> The account clause is a reasonable one, and so<br /> is clause 5, but the 6th clause is again a disas-<br /> trous clause for the author. To bind oneself to a<br /> publisher for another book is at all times a very<br /> dangerous matter. If the publisher treats an<br /> author fairly in the first instance he -would know<br /> that the author would return to him with his<br /> second book, but when a publisher obtains the<br /> signature of an author to an agreement, such as<br /> the one printed above, he may be sure that if in<br /> the meantime the author seeks advice he will not<br /> return to him with a second book unless he binds<br /> the author in the manner shown in clause 6.<br /> That the author should be bound on the same<br /> terms as for the first book with the exception of<br /> the 500 copies makes the matter worse. It may<br /> be pointed out generally that there is nothing<br /> said about American rights, Colonial rights,<br /> translation rights, serial rights, and all other<br /> rights, with the exception that the publisher holds<br /> these. If, therefore, he sells these rights he will<br /> share the profits with the author. A great many<br /> of these rights are sold merely by writing a letter.<br /> In other words, they are rights outside the publi-<br /> cation of the book in England, and as such are<br /> generally treated by agents, who charge 10 per<br /> cent. on the amounts received. Here, however,<br /> the publisher obtains 50 per cent.; a very unwise<br /> arrangement from the author&#039;s point of view.<br /> This is an additional argument against selling<br /> the copyright. It is no wonder that publishers<br /> cry out against agents who desire to take 10 per<br /> cent., when the publisher for doing the same work<br /> secures 50 per cent.<br /> The financial result of this agreement was as<br /> follows:<br /> The cost of production on the debit side was<br /> £120 2s. gd. for an edition of 1500 copies.<br /> In this is included the ordinary items of com-<br /> posing, machining, printing, corrections, and<br /> binding. In addition we find the following in-<br /> cluded:<br /> £ s. d.<br /> Brass binding blocks 2 12 6<br /> Printing 500 show cards 1 7 6<br /> Printing 5000 leaflets 0 9 4<br /> Mounting and composing 8 stereos ... 0 8 0<br /> Making up and printing from red forme 012 6<br /> Design for cover 2 2 0<br /> The sales of the book on the credit side<br /> as follows: £ &lt;<br /> 1 at 3*. icxf o<br /> 9 at 6s. net 2 1<br /> 65/60 at 4*. f less 12$ per cent.<br /> 182/168 at 4s. 2d. I discount<br /> 52/48 at 4*. fleas 10 per cent<br /> 93/86 at. 4*. 2d. I trade discount<br /> 44/41 at 4*. fless 5 per cent.<br /> 52/48 at 4* 2d. \ trade discount<br /> d.<br /> 10<br /> o<br /> 41<br /> 24 15 4<br /> 17 5 10<br /> 86 1 6<br /> And the second account was as follows:<br /> JE s. d.<br /> 4 at 6s 1 4 0<br /> 104 at 48. 2d. Hess 10 per cent.) 20 5 2<br /> 13/12 at 4*. ( discount ) *<br /> 52/48 at 4*. 2d. less 12% per cent. disct. 815 0<br /> 78/72 at 4*. 2d. (less 5 per cent.) l 1Q<br /> 39/36 at 4*. ( discount )<br /> 0<br /> 6<br /> 137 5 .6<br /> The total represents a sale of 788 copies realis-<br /> ing the above figures—the sum of .£137 5*. 6d.<br /> The average price, therefore, is, as nearly as<br /> possible, 3*. 6d., so that the estimate given in<br /> these columns of 3*. 6d. as an average price is<br /> proved to be correct as regards this book.<br /> The 500 copies taken by the publisher must<br /> also be added.<br /> In the end, the publisher takes nearly £100,<br /> and the author ,£5 2s. gd. The result of this<br /> arrangement is, therefore, a most unsatisfactory<br /> one for the author, and in addition the author<br /> has bound himself for the next book to the same<br /> publisher.<br /> THE SIXPENNY BOOK.<br /> 7 11 10<br /> VOL. IX.<br /> &quot;T KNOW a man in my business,&quot; a book-<br /> I seller wrote the other day,&quot; who gets through<br /> 1000 copies of sixpenny novels every week.<br /> Nobody buys any other book. It seems as if the<br /> rest of the books are useless. He makes id. on each,<br /> or £4 3*. 46?. a week out of these novels. And<br /> his rent is .£i0 a week. How long will he last?&quot;<br /> If we look at the bookstall of the nearest<br /> railway station we shall find it covered and<br /> loaded with the sixpenny novel. There is an<br /> increasing disposition, to limit the purchase of a<br /> book to the single 6d.<br /> The greater number of these books are either<br /> non-copyright books or books belonging to the<br /> o g<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 276 (#288) ############################################<br /> <br /> 276<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> publisher; those, namely, on which he has no<br /> royalty to pay.<br /> If there is any royalty it is generally about<br /> Id. on each copy, or £2 10s. for every 1000<br /> copies.<br /> The book costs, say, about 2\d. to produce.<br /> Therefore on a sale of 30,000 copies we have<br /> approximately:—<br /> (1.) The author receives .£75.<br /> . (2.) The bookseller receives .£125.<br /> (3.) The publisher receives .£112.<br /> But a sale of 30,000 copies is high.<br /> As far as the author is concerned, if his new<br /> book was brought out at 6*., on even a 15 per<br /> cent. royalty, he would make more by a sale of<br /> 1700 copies.<br /> The questions which arise on this subject are<br /> many:—<br /> (1.) Would a successful writer do better or worse<br /> by coming out at 6d.?<br /> The class of persons who can read with pleasure<br /> the work of an educated writer is comparatively<br /> small, though it is growing and increasing rapidly.<br /> Outside this number no one buys a book of this<br /> kind, however cheap.<br /> Now, this class manages to read, either by<br /> borrowing, or lending, or buying, most of the<br /> popular works of the day in every branch. If<br /> this class can read a book by borrowing, it will do<br /> so rather than buy it. And this whether it is<br /> priced at 6d. or 6*.<br /> It is undoubted that many popular books sell<br /> in great quantities at 6d. But it is very doubtful<br /> whether this advantage is not a real loss compared<br /> with a book published at a higher price. If, for<br /> instance, Mr. Hall Caine&#039;s &quot;Christian,&quot; which<br /> reached 180,000 copies, had been sold at sixpence,<br /> it may be calculated approximately that the author<br /> would have been a loser supposing his royalty on<br /> the sixpenny book to have been one penny, unless<br /> four million copies at least had been sold.<br /> Or, if we take a calculation of 10,000 sold, and<br /> a royalty of only 20 per cent., or on the six-<br /> penny book, the author would be a loser unless<br /> 240,000 copies were sold.<br /> (2.) What effect will this cheapening of fictioD<br /> produce in other ways?<br /> It will make people unwilling to pay for a<br /> novel more than 6d.<br /> It will lead them to believe that the normal<br /> price for all books must be 6d.<br /> It will necessitate the production of high-priced<br /> books for the libraries, and for the limited class<br /> who will continue to give a high price.<br /> It will make the present stock of six-shilling<br /> books practically unsaleable.<br /> It will probably complete the ruin of the country<br /> bookseller.<br /> It will with equal probability injure the whole<br /> trade of publishing very severely.<br /> It will lower the character and dignity of litera-<br /> ture, because what can be obtained for a few<br /> pence—badly printed; on cheap paper; read and<br /> then thrown away—will be valued at the mental<br /> equivalent for a few pence. This is proved by<br /> the history of the pirated book in America.<br /> An opportune article in Literature, for April 15,<br /> called&#039;attention to the serious danger which is<br /> threatening everybody concerned with the produc-<br /> tion and the circulation of literature. The<br /> figures given by the writer do not altogether<br /> agree with those given here, but they serve to<br /> show the magnitude of the danger.<br /> Can anything be done? The public will buy for<br /> 6d. rather than 6s.—that is certain. It is also<br /> certain that the present price of 6*. or 4*. 6d. is too<br /> high. Publishers can do what they please with their<br /> own property—though they will not allow the<br /> same privilege to booksellers; and if they go on<br /> producing sixpenny books—their own property—<br /> all that authors can do is to protest, and to hope<br /> that the dangers which now seem so threatening;<br /> will either prove illusory, or may end in disaster<br /> quickly, so that we may learn whether the new<br /> method is wisdom or madness.<br /> A writer in the Daily News of April 8 gives,<br /> on the other hand, a different estimate of the<br /> sixpenny book. Literature at this price, he says,<br /> opens up an entirely new field of readers; people<br /> who would never think of buying a six-shilling<br /> book. At the same time, the circulation of the<br /> sixpenny edition is calculated, he thinks, to<br /> stimulate the demand for the more expensive<br /> one; and as sixpenny editions are, at least in<br /> some cases, not reprinted, people who have heard<br /> the book talked of and seen it read by the<br /> sixpenny public, are obliged then to buy the<br /> six-shilling edition if they only apply after the<br /> sixpenny one is for ever exhausted. But while<br /> on the whole the sixpenny novel pays, there is one<br /> deserving individual who is hit very hard by it—<br /> the small bookseller. &quot;The town bookseller is<br /> quite content.&quot; Is he? But see above. &quot;He<br /> can order his thousands and make them pay.<br /> But there are hundreds of suburban booksellers<br /> in London whose struggle for existence grows<br /> keener every day.&quot; One of these spoke of a book<br /> for which, at its first appearance at 6s., there was<br /> &quot;a wonderful demand :—<br /> We sold at least one copy every day—one day we sold<br /> seven. Then, about Christmas, the publishers announced a<br /> sixpenny edition. The sixpenny edition is only just out,<br /> but during the last ten weeks we have only sold two<br /> copies of the book. That is how the sixpenny copyright<br /> novel affects us. It is no use our trying to sell them. What<br /> with disoount, the drapers, and the sixpenny novels, the<br /> small booksellers are on the road to ruin.<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 277 (#289) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 277<br /> In reply to the opinion of the Daily News one<br /> asks if cheap books do open up new fields of<br /> readers, or if they only offer the chance of buying<br /> cheaply what would otherwise have been borrowed<br /> of a library? One may also entertain the gravest<br /> doubts as to the stimulating effect of the sixpenny<br /> book. The general experience is that if anything<br /> is offered at sixpence people will never afterwards<br /> give six shillings for it. And the preceding<br /> remarks answer the opinion as to the contented<br /> town bookseller.<br /> SECRET COMMISSIONS AND SECRET<br /> PROFITS.<br /> AT the monthly dinner of the London<br /> Chamber of Commerce Lord Russell of<br /> Killowen spoke on secret commissions<br /> and his promised Bill. He said:—&quot; There was<br /> no reason in the world why men should not<br /> stipulate for any manner of compensation or<br /> commission they might choose, provided always<br /> that it was open and above board. Therefore let<br /> no one for a moment think that the provisions of<br /> his Bill were of so drastic a kind that they<br /> could possibly act with undue severity or harsh-<br /> ness upon any outspoken honest man. . . .<br /> His own interest in this question dated far<br /> back in his professional years, and he had known<br /> many sad instances of the evils resulting from<br /> the prevailing system—evils not stopping short<br /> at the receipt of commissions, but branching<br /> out into an actual course of crime. . . .<br /> But the thing that was so disgusting in this<br /> country was to find men belonging to the learned<br /> professions taking these secret commissions.<br /> Was it not intolerable to be told that medical<br /> practitioners—he was not attacking these profes-<br /> sional men as a whole, for these cases were the<br /> exceptions—would write a prescription and had<br /> a secret arrangement that the druggist should<br /> give him 25 per cent. on the amount of the<br /> drugs? Was it not disgusting to be teld, as a<br /> fact, that if a doctor recommended a particular<br /> undertaker he got a slice of the undertaker&#039;s<br /> business? Anyone who had taken the trouble to<br /> look into the matter would know that these were<br /> facts. They were exceptions—he hoped rare<br /> exceptions; but where this moral corruption<br /> existed it blunted the sense of honour and of<br /> honesty. Not only w.as it morally detrimental to<br /> those who took part in it, demoralising to<br /> individuals and, in part, to the community, but<br /> unjust and unfair to men who maintained a high<br /> standard of probity and of honour.&quot;<br /> How would these remarks applr to secret profits<br /> made by one party to an agreenrofit or the other?<br /> Let us imagine that Lord Russell was speaking<br /> of secret profits.<br /> &quot;There was no reason in the world why men<br /> should not stipulate for any manner of discount<br /> or commission they might choose, provided always<br /> that it was open and above board. It would be<br /> for the other side to accept or to refuse. . . .<br /> His own interest in this question dated far<br /> back in his professional years, and he had known<br /> many sad instances of the evils resulting from<br /> the prevailing system—evils not stopping short<br /> at the secret receipt of discount, but branching<br /> out into charging for advertisements which cost<br /> nothing, and alleged expenses not incurred. . . .<br /> The thing that was so disgusting was to find<br /> men received into clubs as honourable gentlemen<br /> taking these secret profits and making their<br /> charges. . . . When this moral corruption<br /> existed it blunted the sense of honour and of<br /> honesty. Not only was it morally detrimental to<br /> those who took part in it, demoralising to the<br /> individuals concerned, and demoralising to the<br /> cause of literature, but it was unjust and unfair<br /> to those who maintained a high standard of<br /> probity and of honour.&quot;<br /> The question has been already asked whether<br /> Lord Russell&#039;s Bill will include all kinds of<br /> secret profits, and, therefore, the practice now<br /> openly advocated by the committee of the Pub-<br /> lishers&#039; Association. If, as it is hoped, it proves<br /> to include this practice, it will stamp the prac-<br /> tice with legal penalties and greatly discourage<br /> the persons who practise, or continue to advocate,<br /> the taking of secret profits, or the charge of<br /> moneys not spent. For this reason the Society<br /> should regard Lord Russell&#039;s Bill with consider-<br /> able interest.<br /> THE STORY-TELLING REVIEWER.<br /> AT the annual meeting of our Society I called<br /> attention to the somewhat common practice<br /> of giving in a review an outline of the<br /> plot, or, in the slang of the day, of &quot;giving away&quot;<br /> the story. That this was done without the least<br /> desire to injure the author&#039;s or publisher&#039;s inte-<br /> rests in the book I had no doubt whatever; and<br /> I also had no doubt that the practice did in<br /> many instances materially injure the sales of a<br /> book. I pointed out that editors were literary<br /> men themselves, that they had a fellow feeling<br /> for authors generally, and that some at least of<br /> them, if a representation on the subject were<br /> made by the Committee, would be certain to meet<br /> the wishes of authors. I also pointed out that,<br /> if we offered a book for review, we could not com-<br /> plain&quot; if it was condemned and severely handled;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 278 (#290) ############################################<br /> <br /> 278<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> but we might, I thought, justly complain if the<br /> leading features of the plot, and particularly<br /> its termination, were described, and the interest<br /> of possible readers materially lessened.<br /> It was quite evident that these few remarks<br /> met with general approval among the fifty or sixty<br /> authors present, and the matter ended by an<br /> understanding that the question would be dis-<br /> cussed by our Committee, which would very<br /> possibly communicate with the principal editors<br /> on the subject. I am not aware that this has<br /> been done, and I have been asked by the Com-<br /> mittee to deal with the subject in The Author<br /> This I gladly do; at the same time, wishing that<br /> the matter had been placed in the hands of a<br /> novelist of greater standing than myself, and<br /> preferably one who had more reason to complain<br /> of reviewers than I who have been almost invari-<br /> ably treated with the greatest kindness and<br /> consideration. Now and again one gets a spite-<br /> ful review, for there are among reviewers and<br /> critics men lacking the high principles so requi-<br /> site in their branch of literary work, just as there<br /> are, I regret to admit, authors and publishers who<br /> lack those high principles which are so eminently<br /> desirable in all that pertains to our craft.<br /> I have sometimes thought that reviews of the<br /> kind I am more particula rly referring to—perhaps<br /> they should more properly be termed &quot;notices&quot;<br /> —are often written by men in all kindness to the<br /> author. &quot;Here is a book,&quot; I can imagine the<br /> critic saying, &quot;which is neither very good nor<br /> very bad. It is evidently the work of an inex-<br /> perienced hand. I will not help to ruin a young<br /> author&#039;s prospects by too severely condemning<br /> him. I will simply give the readers of the paper<br /> in which my review appears a good idea of the<br /> contents of the book, and they can read it or<br /> leave it unread, as they think proper.&quot; Then he<br /> writes something in this fashion: &quot;From Messrs.<br /> Short and Rigby we have received Mr. John Jones&#039;s<br /> new novel of Welsh life. Many persons will<br /> doubtless read it with interest. The first chapter<br /> opens with. . . .&quot; Then he mentions all the<br /> characters, describes as briefly as he can what<br /> part they take in the story, and very likely ends<br /> by saying &quot; Vice is defeated, Virtue is triumphant,<br /> the hero and heroine are united, and everyone is<br /> as happy as marriage bells.&quot;<br /> For books which depend upon plot and inci-<br /> dent for their interest, such a &quot; review&quot; is almost<br /> fatal. In the case of those novels, the literary<br /> merit of which lies in wit, epigram, and analysis<br /> of character, many novel readers would be<br /> deterred from ordering the book if, from some<br /> notice they have read in the paper, it seemed to<br /> lack plot. Some modern works of considerable<br /> merit contain hardly any plot at all, and m«rely<br /> to give a brief outline of their contents creates a<br /> very false impression concerning them.<br /> To take the opposite case of books of consider-<br /> able length, crammed full of incident, and written<br /> round a most elaborate plot: here the reviewer<br /> who tries to tell the story in brief, necessarily<br /> fails, owing to limitations of space, and does the<br /> author an injustice.<br /> So much for one side of the picture. On the<br /> other hand, there are numbers of reviewers who,<br /> very likely from being authors themselves, are as<br /> fully alive to the effect of telling the whole story<br /> as is any novelist. It is quite a common thing to<br /> find a review terminating with some such words<br /> as these: &quot;To tell more of the story would be<br /> unfair to the author.&quot;<br /> There are some novelists, it is said, who like to<br /> have their story told in the revi ,w. I have a<br /> difliculty in believing that they really approve of<br /> the entire plot being disclosed, from page 1 to<br /> the end. Possibly they mean a description of the<br /> story just a little short of this. However, we<br /> have in The Author a means of communication<br /> which will enable such points to be cleared up.<br /> In conclusion, may I express a hope that the<br /> few lines I have written on the subject may not<br /> be misunderstood? I am quite prepared to have<br /> it stated that I have made an attempt to teach<br /> reviewers their business. Though it has fallen to<br /> my lot to write many reviews, I should be<br /> extremely sorry to have this said. I have no<br /> complaint to make of reviews, but of the notice<br /> which consists of a description of the plot,<br /> and is, in very truth, not a review at all. I<br /> believe newspaper readers, as well as authors,<br /> object to have books noticed in this manner. I<br /> once heard a lady say: &quot;I was going to get Mr.<br /> &#039;s book from the library, but I read the whole<br /> of the story in the Daily Post, and after that I<br /> didn&#039;t care to read the book.&quot; This may be the<br /> case with many novel readers. When asking<br /> people how they like a book, I often get the reply,<br /> &quot;Oh! I really haven&#039;t read it, but I get a very<br /> good idea of it from the review in the Morning<br /> Blazer.&quot; John Bickerdyke.<br /> PARIS NOTES.<br /> THE acquittal of Mme. Chabrie-, whose private<br /> information had been utilised without her<br /> sanction in a series of Press articles by M.<br /> Gaston Mery {Libre Parole), and of M. Urbain<br /> Gohier, whose recent publication, &quot;L&#039;Armee<br /> contre la Nation,&quot; had awakened the censorship<br /> of the authorities, shows that the French nation<br /> at large is awar* «f the primary importance of a<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 279 (#291) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> free Press. The trial of M. G-ohier aroused great<br /> interest, since its issue embraced the solution of<br /> an important point closely affecting the prosperity<br /> of the country—viz., the liberty of the individual<br /> French writer to criticise the tactics of his<br /> military chiefs. After numerous quotations from<br /> the approved works of writers as diverse as<br /> MM. de Cassagnac, Drumont, Rochefort, Jules<br /> Lemaitre, Francois Coppee, and Georges Courte-<br /> line, who were each in turn proved to have pro-<br /> pagated seditious doctrine on this head, Me.<br /> Clemenceau, counsel for the accused, boldly<br /> declared M. Gohier&#039;s criticisms to be salutary to<br /> the true interests of the French Army. He<br /> maintained that his client attacked no one without<br /> furnishing proof of their malversation; if his<br /> tone in so doing appeared occasionally violent, it<br /> must be attributed to the fact that the work<br /> in question was compiled from journalistic<br /> articles—for the journalist resembled the pilot,<br /> in order to be heard he was forced to have recourse<br /> to a speaking trumpet. Me. Clemenceau con-<br /> cluded his defence by expressing a fervent hope<br /> that other writers would follow the example of<br /> his client, this &quot;troubler of apothesises &quot;—since<br /> France would thus be preserved from inscribing<br /> a second time in her annals dates as shameful as<br /> those of Sedan, Metz, Paris. The burst of enthu-<br /> siastic bravos and loud outcries of &#039;Vive Gohier &#039;.&quot;<br /> which greeted the verdict of acquittal preceded by<br /> this eloquent peroration gave palpable proof that<br /> jury and populace were in accord in resenting this<br /> side attack on the liberty of the individual<br /> thinker.<br /> The election of M. Marcel Prevost to the pre-<br /> sidency of the Socie&#039;te&#039; des Gens de Lettres was<br /> flatteringly unanimous, comprising a majority of<br /> twenty votes against three, of which latter two<br /> were blanks. At the previous meeting, in which<br /> M. Henry Houssaye had resigned the same<br /> dignity owing to his term of office having expired,<br /> a rather stormy scene took place. After having<br /> announced that the meeting was convoked to<br /> replace the eight members whose term of office<br /> had expired and also to fill the place left vacant<br /> by the death of the late regretted Albert Bataille<br /> —in all, nine members—M. Brau de Saint-Pol-<br /> Lias continued, &quot; Or rather ten members, since our<br /> rules permit us to erase the name of any person<br /> who has failed to attend six consecutive meetings.<br /> Now, there is a member who has failed in<br /> attending more than six meetings. . . .&quot;<br /> Although no name was mentioned, everyone was<br /> aware at whom these remarks were aimed. M.<br /> Armand Charpentier cried loudly &quot; Vive Zola!&quot;<br /> while the majority of members present pro-<br /> tested against any question of party politics<br /> being introduced. On taking possession of the<br /> fauteuil vacated by M. Houssaye, M. Provost<br /> adroitly stated his opinion on the subject in<br /> sketching out the attitude he desired the Society<br /> to adopt. &quot;Even before being a kind of literary<br /> club,&quot; said he, &quot;we are a commercial society,<br /> a mutual-aid society. Our political opinions<br /> should be mute here, though free. If liberty of<br /> thought were ever proscribed it would belong to<br /> us, men of letters, to offer it an asylum in<br /> our midst. This tolerance is our honour.<br /> When one of our comrades has worked, has<br /> written books by which our Society has profited,<br /> no matter in what measure, in providing pensions<br /> for its superannuated and assistance for its<br /> indigent members; when this comrade has taken<br /> his seat at our table, has aided us with his energy<br /> and effort; if the day comes when he finds himself<br /> exposed to the vicissitudes of public opinion—we<br /> owe it to him, we owe it to ourselves, we owe it to<br /> true literature and French tradition, not to excite<br /> the crowd against him, not to throw stones<br /> against him with the hands he has clasped.&quot;<br /> This generous speech excited warm applause. The<br /> nomination of office-bearers for the present year<br /> then took place, M. Henry Houssaye being elected<br /> honorary president and MM. Lafargue and de<br /> Larmandie vice-presidents. Three new members<br /> were likewise admitted to the Society, of whom<br /> two were women; and it is more than rumoured<br /> that a project was on foot to demand the admis-<br /> sion of feminine members to the committee of<br /> the Society. The ladies, however, not wishing<br /> that two irritating topics should be broached on<br /> the same day, magnanimously agreed to defer<br /> all allusion to the subject until the following<br /> meeting. Its first introduction will, doubt-<br /> less, be hotly combated and criticised, but the<br /> eventual triumph of the fair sex is a foregone<br /> conclusion.<br /> The death of Mme. Clesinger, daughter of<br /> George Sand, has again brought the latter&#039;s name<br /> prominently before the public in the daily papers.<br /> Later evidence has satisfactorily vindicated the<br /> grave charge brought against Mme. Sand by her<br /> contemporaries of having forced her daughter to<br /> accept her own discarded lover, Clesinger, as a<br /> husband. Mme. Clesinger was the author of one<br /> or two novels of inferior merit, and in no wise<br /> inherited her mother&#039;s literary talent. Their<br /> appearance was as dissimilar as their characters<br /> were antagonistic. Solange Cle&#039;singer-Sand had<br /> a masculine type of countenance, an arched nose,<br /> and a frank, almost audacious expression; her<br /> figure was admirably proportioned, and she was<br /> not lacking in wit. Several years after her sepa-<br /> ration from her husband she inhabited a small<br /> suite of rooms in the Rue Taitbout, and among<br /> the intimate friends who frequented her society<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 280 (#292) ############################################<br /> <br /> 280<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> may be mentioned Gambetta, Ferry, Laferriere,<br /> Edouard Herve, Weiss, Taine, Henry Fouquier,<br /> Floquet, and Bethmont. She died at her castle of<br /> Montgivray, and was buried beside her mother.<br /> M. Maurice Eollinat is now engaged in<br /> revising the proofs of the new volume of poems<br /> he intends publishing shortly. M. Rollinat is a<br /> fervent student and admirer of the works of<br /> George Sand and Edgar Poe. He is, likewise, a<br /> most infatuated angler, and not even the red<br /> ribbon which the Government bestowed on him<br /> in 1895 has sufficed to wean him from pursuing<br /> his favourite pastime. To Mme. Sarah Bernhardt<br /> belongs the honour of having discovered this<br /> ichthyophagistic rhymester.<br /> The Soci^te des Gens de Lettres has confided<br /> to M. Falguiere the execution of the statue of<br /> Balzac, to be exhibited at the next Salon. The<br /> bust of M. Henri Houssaye, the work of Mlle.<br /> Aim-lie Colombie, will be exhibited on the same<br /> occasion; the latter is reported to be an excellent<br /> reproduction of the features of the great his-<br /> torian. It is further proposed to celebrate the<br /> two hundredth anniversary of Racine by the<br /> inauguration of two busts, viz:, that of Pascal<br /> at St. Etienne du Mont and that of Racine on<br /> the ruins of Port Royal. The project of erecting<br /> a reduced replica of Guy de Maupassant&#039;s monu-<br /> ment at Paris (pare Monceau) in the square of<br /> his native town of Rouen has met with universal<br /> sympathy, the artists engaged on the work re-<br /> fusing all remuneration beyond the actual cost of<br /> labour and material employed. The unveiling of<br /> the new monument will take place next month;<br /> it will stand in the middle of a small green sward,<br /> opposite Chapu&#039;s medallion of Flaubert, the friend<br /> and master of Guy de Maupassant.<br /> At the recent International Press Congress at<br /> Rome Italy was, of course, so far first in the field<br /> as regards the number of her representatives as<br /> to be quite out of the running. Among foreign<br /> countries France carried off the palm numerically,<br /> being represented by no less than eighty-seven<br /> delegates, in addition to twenty-five wives and<br /> daughters of delegates. Germany stood second<br /> on the list, having sent forty-six representatives,<br /> Austria third, Hungary fourth, Belgium fifth,<br /> and England sixth, while the United States<br /> shared the seventh place with Sweden and<br /> Portugal, each of the three last-named countries<br /> being represented by ten delegates.<br /> The &quot;English mania&quot; that is so frequently<br /> deplored by the French writers of the present<br /> day is steadily invading the Parisian stage.<br /> Shakespeare has evidently come to btay, despite<br /> M. Fouquier&#039;s assertions to the contrary, and his<br /> &quot;Beaucoup de bruit pour rien &quot; now adorns the<br /> programme of the Opera Comique; the Ambigu-<br /> Comique gives us &quot; Les Chevaliers du Brouillard,&quot;<br /> a play adapted from one of Ainsworth&#039;s novels<br /> and in the salle of the Societes savantes we find<br /> &quot;Betsey,&quot; an English play in three acts by<br /> Mr. Burnand. Apropos of theatrical literature,<br /> M. Bergerat&#039;s new play, &quot;Plus que Reine,&quot;<br /> is sharing the fate of its literary predecessors,<br /> &quot;Le Lys Rouge,&quot; &quot; Le Coupable,&quot; &amp;c, viz., it bores<br /> the public. After having heralded its advent with a<br /> fanfaronade of extravagant panegyric, the critics<br /> are now harking back on their first judgment,<br /> and discovering that the play lacks cohesion,<br /> historical accuracy, and dramatic verve. They<br /> are likewise shocked at seeing Mme. Jane Hading<br /> represent the Creole Josephine in a blonde wig,<br /> and scandalised at finding Napoleon&#039;s costume<br /> inoorrect in sundry details. This failure only<br /> bears out our previous assertion regarding the<br /> fallacy of believing that a dramatic and a literary<br /> talent were concomitant attributes.<br /> Translations of modern English literature are<br /> largely patronised here. In addition to devoting<br /> several columns to appreciating the works and<br /> style of Rudyard Kipling—&quot; prince de la ballade<br /> et roi du conte &quot;—the Annales lately endeavoured<br /> to give a specimen of the latter by publishing a<br /> translation of his &quot; White Seal.&quot; Although more<br /> justly rendered than we had imagined possible, it<br /> was nevertheless a very flat narrative in compari-<br /> son with the brilliant originality of the English<br /> version; yet, even under these favourable circum-<br /> stances, we were unable to detect the analogy<br /> the French critics have discovered to exist<br /> between the style of Pierre Loti and that of<br /> Rudyard Kipling.<br /> The death of Mme. Michelet, nie Athemas<br /> Mialaret, widow of the great historian, has<br /> occasioned the publication of some of the letters<br /> which passed between them before the idea<br /> of matrimony was entertained by either. The<br /> whole story reads like a romance. Early left<br /> an orphan and forced by the improvidence<br /> of her parents to earn her livelihood, Mlle.<br /> Mialaret accepted the post of governess in<br /> a private family at Vienna. The indifferent<br /> kindness meted out to her by her employers<br /> failed to satisfy her moral and intellectual<br /> requirements. She fell into a state of profound<br /> melancholy. At this juncture in her career she<br /> chanced to read one of Michelet&#039;s works entitled<br /> &quot;Le Pretre.&quot; It touched her so profoundly that<br /> she wrote to the author, confiding to him her<br /> mental and moral distress. He replied by an<br /> admirable letter to which she gratefully responded;<br /> and when a few months later her failing health<br /> forced her to return to the milder climate of<br /> Paris, the acquaintance commenced on paper<br /> speedily ripened into a warmer sentiment than-<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 281 (#293) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 281<br /> platonic friendship and esteem. The affection<br /> was mutual, though the great historian was in his<br /> fifty-second and theyoung governess in her twenty-<br /> third year at the date of their union. Neverthe-<br /> less the marriage proved an extremely happy one;<br /> and during the twenty-five years that elapsed<br /> between her husband&#039;s and her own death Mme.<br /> Michelet lived devoted to his memory. For years<br /> she refused to have any renovations made in the<br /> suite of rooms they had occupied together;<br /> finally, she consented to permit certain necessary<br /> repairs, though still refusing to quit the premises.<br /> She caught cold through sleeping in the midst of<br /> the damp plaster, and died eight days later from<br /> a violent attack of pleurisy. She had reached<br /> the ripe age of seventy-two years, and was a<br /> graceful and sympathetic writer.<br /> The recently published memoirs of Alfred de<br /> Musset by his old housekeeper, Mme. Adele Colin-<br /> Martellet, contain much interesting matter.<br /> Among other anecdotes she narrates that the poet<br /> had a little dog, named Marzo, to whom he was<br /> greatly attached. When his master died Marzo<br /> believed him only absent, and every evening<br /> patiently awaited him at the accustomed hour.<br /> For seven years Marzo nightly waited thus, at<br /> the end of which time the poor little fellow died<br /> with his eyes fixed on the door by which he still<br /> fondly hoped to see his master enter. Mme.<br /> Martellet&#039;s husband carried off the small corpse<br /> intending to inter it in one of the adjacent plots<br /> of waste land. At the corner of the rue Boileau<br /> he came across a companv of workmen engaged<br /> in making a new road and there deposited<br /> Marzo&#039;s remains, covering them with several<br /> shovelfuls of earth. By curious coincidence this<br /> new street is to-day known as the rue de Musset.<br /> During the past month French literature has<br /> registered the following deaths in addition to<br /> those above cited, viz., that of M. Erckmann, who,<br /> in collaboration with M. Chatrian, wrote the<br /> famous series of tales, respectively entitled<br /> &quot;Waterloo,&quot; &quot;1&#039;Ami Fritz,&quot; &quot;l&#039;lllustre Docteur<br /> Mathews,&quot; &quot;Madame Therese,&quot; &quot;Blocus,&quot;<br /> &quot;Souvenirs d&#039;un homme du peuple.&quot; &amp;c., and<br /> whose character sketches were so just and fine<br /> that the phrase—&quot; C&#039;est un personnage d&#039;Erck-<br /> mann-Chatrian &quot;—has passed into current usage;<br /> of M. Paul Bonnetain, Government commissioner,<br /> author of several original and interesting novels,<br /> respectively entitled &quot;Passagere,&quot; &quot;le Tour du<br /> monde d&#039;un troupier,&quot; &quot;Au Tonkin,&quot; &quot;le Journal<br /> d&#039;un marsouin,&quot; &amp;c.; of M. Paul Mahalin, who<br /> gained notoriety as a master of the &quot;roman-<br /> feuilleton &quot; genre; of M. Vaucheret, who, under<br /> the pseudonym of Jean Bruno, has for almost<br /> fifty years been a prolific contributor to the fiction<br /> column of numerous periodicals; and of M.<br /> Berthold Zeller, Professor of History at the Sor-<br /> bonne, and author of numerous important his-<br /> torical works which have each successively had<br /> the honour of being &quot;couronne par l&#039;Academie<br /> fran9aise.&quot; Darracotte Dene.<br /> NOTES AND NEWS.<br /> THE annual dinner of the Royal Literary<br /> Fund was duly held, and the usual hat<br /> went round in the familiar manner. The<br /> chairman, according to the only report that I have<br /> read, seems to have refrained very wisely from<br /> advocating the necessity of increasing the income<br /> of the society on account of increasing demands.<br /> On the other hand, he did not represent—the<br /> statement would certainly have chilled the gene-<br /> rosity of the charitable—the fact that the Council<br /> cannot spend on deserving cases one half of their<br /> present income. Nor can I believe that all the<br /> donations which were announced—to the amount<br /> of .£ii50—would have been contributed had the<br /> donors realised or understood this broad fact,<br /> which is, that the Royal Literary Fund has at<br /> last got quite enough money for its present<br /> wants. If its resources should prove insufficient,<br /> there is no doubt that more money would be<br /> forthcoming. As is pointed out in another<br /> column, there is reason to fear that there may be<br /> an increase in the demands should the sixpenny<br /> book kill the profession of literature; but there is<br /> still time to provide against that catastrophe.<br /> Meantime, the subject may rest until next<br /> February, when I hope that the point may be<br /> seriously and officially advanced. This year it<br /> was asked too late. It will take the form of a<br /> plain question: Why does the Council ask for<br /> more money when the present income is more<br /> than double the amount of the calls made<br /> upon it? nic&gt;<br /> A writer in Literature says that although I<br /> maintain that the capital sum invested by the<br /> Royal Literary Fund is sufficient to meet all<br /> demands likely to be made upon it—a contention<br /> which is proved by the report—I also ask that<br /> the Civil Pension Grant shall be confined to<br /> persons distinguished in literature, science, and<br /> art, &quot; which seems to indicate,&quot; I read,&quot; that he<br /> is not always, equally sure of the prosperity of<br /> men of letters.&quot; I fail to perceive this indica-<br /> tion. Besides, if my critic would only read further<br /> he would, I think, discover that I ask for a<br /> substitution in place of the words &quot;or other<br /> persons worthy of Her Majesty&#039;s bounty,&quot; the<br /> words &quot;or widows or daughters of persons so<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 282 (#294) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> distinguished.&quot; This I propose in order that the<br /> practice now common in the administration of<br /> this grant should be recognised by a resolution of<br /> Parliament, and that the widows of persons dis-<br /> tinguished in literature, science, or art, should be<br /> legally entitled to receive these pensions, but not<br /> the widows of Colonial Governors or other<br /> deserving and distinguished persons. But the<br /> Grant and the Fund have nothing to do with each<br /> other. The former gives pensions: the latter<br /> gives temporary relief. Without any reference to<br /> the former, it is proved that the latter could only<br /> find last year twenty-two distressed men or<br /> women of letters. Only twenty-two out of the<br /> thousands who live by the pen!<br /> This fact is to my mind a very signal proof—<br /> one not to be disputed—of the general welfare of<br /> the Folk of Letters. It is now a numerous Folk:<br /> they are legion: and out of so many there are<br /> only twenty-two deserving cases: not one turned<br /> away from want of funds; and .£2000 invested<br /> out of income. In face of all the facts I can no<br /> longer admit that the profession is precarious,<br /> any more than any other profession. Of course,<br /> there is risk of ill-success in every profession, but<br /> less risk, given the natural aptitude, which is of<br /> course necessary, than in any other. Why is this<br /> contention, which has been advanced on several<br /> occasions, called &quot; optimist&quot;? Why is it always<br /> received with a strange unwillingness and a still<br /> stranger dislike? The only reason that I can<br /> discover is that it upsets a rooted tradition, and<br /> to tear up old traditions makes people uncomfor-<br /> table. Authors, we have always been taught, are<br /> a beggarly company. Grub Street even parades<br /> its rags. Well: but where is Grub Street r Show<br /> those rags. Produce those beggars. Are they<br /> in the clubs? There are literary men by the<br /> hundred in the Athenaeum, the Savile, the<br /> Authors&#039;, the Savage, the Garrick, and other clubs.<br /> They sit down with the other men, and, appar-<br /> ently, they can pay for their dinners: they<br /> present an outward show of broadcloth: they<br /> even wear gloves: they preserve an appearance of<br /> solvency: one might take them for City men.<br /> They seldom become bankrupt; I remember only<br /> one or two cases of the bankruptcy of a literary<br /> man.<br /> At this moment, while I know writers who<br /> would like to make more by their pen, I<br /> doubt if I know one who has had occasion to<br /> go to the Royal Literary Fund. There may be,<br /> and very likely are, people who would like<br /> above all things to be men or women of letters.<br /> One can hardly call persons followers of literature<br /> who have attempted and proved incompetent.<br /> A man is not a poet who has produced a volume<br /> of feeble rhyme. Again, there is an excellent<br /> reason why Literature is a much less precarious<br /> profession than Medicine or either branch of the<br /> Law; namely, that it has so many branches. And,<br /> as I said before, they overlap each other. If one<br /> may, without offence, produce examples, I need<br /> go no farther than the accomplished editor of<br /> Literature himself, who is historian, poet,<br /> essayist, critic, and editor: I might point out<br /> Mr. W. E. Henley, poet, biographer, editor, and<br /> dramatist: Mr. J. M. Barrie, essayist, novelist,<br /> and dramatist: Dr. Conan Doyle, novelist, poet,<br /> and dramatist: the late William Biack, jour-<br /> nalist and novelist: Mr. Andrew Lang, scholar,<br /> poet, novelist, historian, journalist, and critic:<br /> Mr. Justin McCarthy, novelist and historian. It<br /> may be objected that I am taking extreme cases.<br /> They are certainly cases of successful writers.<br /> But these cases illustrate my position, viz., that<br /> if a man proves himself able to write (if he is an<br /> attractive writer) a scholar and an authority,<br /> there is certainly no other profession in which he<br /> would be so safe. The chief danger is that<br /> common to every profession, that a man&#039;s health<br /> may break down; there is also the danger that,<br /> for some reason or other, he may lose his charm.<br /> Anthony Trollope lost his charm at the end, or<br /> seemed to do so; but he kept it till much past<br /> sixty. This also is a danger in every other<br /> profession. Literature, I repeat, is no longer a<br /> precarious profession—if the candidate possesses<br /> the natural aptitude. Cannot the same thing be<br /> said of every other profession? Does a lawyer<br /> succeed who is no lawyer?<br /> Let me turn over two or three leaves, at random,<br /> of that useful annual with the wonderful name of<br /> &quot;Who&#039;s Who.&quot; Here are a few examples: (1)<br /> Novelist, humourist, journalist: (2) story-teller,<br /> journalist, caricaturist: (3) preacher, theologian,<br /> scholar: (4) novelist, historian, poet: (5) pro-<br /> fessor, editor, critic: (6) preacher and poet:<br /> (7) journalist, editor, critic, dramatist: (8)<br /> journalist, biographer, historian: (9) novelist<br /> only: (10) archaeologist and historian: (11) bio-<br /> grapher, historian, traveller: (12) artist, author,<br /> and journalist. These names have been found<br /> in half a dozen consecutive pages of the<br /> book. I think they prove my point, that the<br /> many-sided character of the literary profession<br /> goes far to remove its former reputation for<br /> uncertainty. Of great prizes I do not speak.<br /> Nor do I speak of the incompetent and their<br /> sufferings. A far greater number of incompetent<br /> persons attempt literature than any other pro-<br /> fession because it seems to want no apprenticeship<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 283 (#295) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 283<br /> and it appears to be so easy. We cannot allow<br /> that those persons belong to the literary life any<br /> more than we call those students who cannot<br /> pass their examinations lawyers or physicians.<br /> Now, the examination which every literary man<br /> must pass, and every successful literary man<br /> must pass in honours, is twofold: he must be<br /> examined by the critic, and he must be examined<br /> by the public. _<br /> A contributor to the New York Writer (Ruth<br /> Hall), endeavouring to show that new writers<br /> find it very difficult to get into American maga-<br /> zines, gives a few statistics :—<br /> 1. Harper&#039;s Magazine for February contains<br /> twenty-three articles. Of these, one short story,<br /> one essay, and three poems are by unknown<br /> writers.<br /> 2. The Century for February contains twenty-<br /> seven contributions, of which seven are by unknown<br /> writers.<br /> These figures, however, seem to prove exactly<br /> the reverse of her proposition. When we consider<br /> that a magazine is not run with the object of<br /> advancing writers but of advancing the pro-<br /> prietor: that the editor&#039;s first duty is to find out<br /> what will instruct and attract: tbat popular<br /> authors are certain to attract: and that untried<br /> and unkno wn authors can only attract by reason<br /> of the very rare condition of having something to<br /> tell which is new and curious: and that popular<br /> authors can almost always be had if the editor<br /> will pay them—we can understand how difficult<br /> it must be for a new writer to get a hearing.<br /> We can also understand how the English maga-<br /> zine of the older kind seems sinking into a kind<br /> of atrophy because the editor and proprietor will<br /> not understand the simple rule of supply and<br /> demand. To sit down in a chair and wait for<br /> things is the editing of the past. To arrange<br /> beforehand with an eye to what will please and<br /> attract readers, yet with a door open to the new<br /> comer, is the editing of the present and the future.<br /> The new comer, when he finds that in Harper&#039;s<br /> Magazine there are five out of twenty-three<br /> papers, and in the Century seven out of twenty-<br /> seven, contributed by unknown writers, may take<br /> courage. There is still the open door.<br /> Walter Besant.<br /> CORRESPONDENCE.<br /> I.—Against Difficulties.<br /> THE March number of your paper has just<br /> come into my hands, and I am greatly<br /> interested in the letter of Mr. Julian<br /> Croskey, a gentleman whose career I have<br /> followed carefully during the last two years.<br /> The advice he gives to the parents of young<br /> men who are determined to devote their lives<br /> to literature is, I think, excellent; but how<br /> many parents will listen to his counsel? Very<br /> few, if any. I myself am determined to adopt<br /> the literary profession, but I have not the neces-<br /> sary means; rich relatives are scarce, and parents<br /> unwilling. Meanwhile, I am miserable. But<br /> what can I do? Nothing! I have had sufficient<br /> success to warrant me believing that in two years<br /> from now I could, by constant work and hard<br /> writing, earn a &quot;comfortable income.&quot; But I<br /> am chained to office work, and my evenings are<br /> as miserable as my mornings and afternoons, for<br /> what literary work can a man do who comes home<br /> tired-out, despondent, and swearing softly to<br /> himself? o-o Waiting.<br /> II. Charity for Brain-Workers.<br /> I thought the days when people of title<br /> honoured themselves by taking authors and<br /> artists under their patronage had passed, but I<br /> seem to be mistaken. In a recent number of the<br /> Academy particulars were given of a home of<br /> rest in the Riviera for tired brain-workers. A<br /> lady of title is apparently the originator of the<br /> scheme. Men are to pay their own expenses to<br /> and from the place, they are to pay a minimum<br /> of a pound a week for board and lodging, and in<br /> return they are evidently to get what any person<br /> with a pound a week to spare can command in<br /> decent habitations in the South of France, while<br /> they are to be governed by a set of rules which<br /> ought never to be tolerated on the free side of a<br /> gaol or a workhouse. A man who can afford to<br /> pay a sovereign a week can afford to keep clear<br /> of a retreat of this description. A Member.<br /> III.—The Extravagant Dinner.<br /> Dissatisfaction among the members of the<br /> Authors&#039; Society, tnough perhaps occasionally<br /> inevitable, is surely a thing to be avoided so far<br /> as possible. I believe considerable dissatisfaction<br /> does exist among many members at the high price<br /> charged for the annual dinner ticket. If we<br /> were a society of Stock Exchange men, or pub-<br /> lishers, or racehorse owners, or company pro-<br /> moters, a guinea would perhaps be fitting and<br /> proper; but we are poor authors, few of us with<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 284 (#296) ############################################<br /> <br /> 284<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> even the incomes of a bishop, many of us women<br /> and stragglers for life. Our Committee, I take<br /> it, are among the successful. Cannot they show<br /> their sympathy for the poorer members of the<br /> Society by following the example of almost every<br /> other club and society in England, and fixing the<br /> dinner ticket at a more moderate sum? The<br /> guinea, I know, includes wine, but this is most<br /> unfair to those, particularly women, who drink<br /> little or none. In ninety-nine public dinners out<br /> of a hundred the guests pay for the wine they<br /> consume. Why should not we do likewise?<br /> If two-thirds of the price of the ticket were paid<br /> to the funds of The Author, or some other such<br /> admirable object, our grievance would be lessened;<br /> but I believe most members of the Society will<br /> agree with me that to force those who wish to<br /> meet their fellow members at the annual dinner<br /> into an act of wasteful extravagance, is bad policy<br /> on the part of our executive. When a dinner<br /> was given in honour of yourself, at the Holborn<br /> Restaurant, the price of the ticket was only 5$.,<br /> and the arrangement worked well enough. The<br /> attendance was enormous, and there was really<br /> nothing to complain of. Annual dinners have a<br /> remarkable effect in keeping clubs and societies<br /> of all kinds together, but ours loses much of this<br /> effect owing to the price of the ticket, which<br /> actually equals a year&#039;s subscription to the<br /> Society.<br /> I hope other members will express their<br /> opinions on this subject in the pages of The<br /> Author. Diane.<br /> IV.—Typewriting Offices.<br /> May I ask for the insertion of these few words<br /> in answer to two letters which appeared in your<br /> issues of February and March, condemning in a<br /> wholesale fashion the typewriting offices?<br /> It appears to me both your correspondents are<br /> not fully acquainted with the real facts connected<br /> with the typing industry, or the former would not<br /> suggest that the payment of gd. a thousand was<br /> an adequate sum to offer a woman, even a home<br /> worker.<br /> The typist who does Mr. Goodrich Freer&#039;s<br /> work at gd. a 1000 makes, if she is a fairly quick<br /> worker, and works, say, eight hours a day, 26s. a<br /> week. That is to say, she can copy 6000 words<br /> in a day, taking at the lowest computation two<br /> hours a day for the examining of the copy with<br /> the MSS. Now, take the case of the girl who<br /> has been trained in shorthand and typing in a<br /> first-class office; she is then able to take a<br /> situation, either in a typewriting office or in a<br /> mercantile office, where she can secure regular<br /> work, and scores over the home worker in the<br /> following way: First, as to hours, she works nine<br /> hours a week less, bemuse office hours in the<br /> typewriting offices are 10 to 6, and she has<br /> Saturday afternoon off; secondly, she has no<br /> worry in securing work, as she is paid whether it<br /> is slack or not; thirdly, she can make in a good<br /> office, without languages, 30s. to 35*. a week;<br /> fourth, she has not to find machine, ink, or<br /> stationery. In a mercantile office she can make<br /> up to £2, but their hours, as a rule, are rather<br /> longer—9.30 to 6. In the typewriting office she<br /> certainly does some of the work when she is suffi-<br /> 2iently proficient to be trusted with it, but how<br /> else will she learn her business?<br /> I cannot see any justice in calling the typewriting<br /> office people &quot; clever exploiters of other people&#039;s<br /> labour,&quot; as it must be remembered that the pupils<br /> are given an opportunity which can be given in<br /> no other way to learn their profession properly,<br /> and so become capable of earning a fair wage,<br /> which I do not consider Mr. Goodrich Freer&#039;s 265.<br /> a week to be. Madeleine Greenwood.<br /> V.—Payment on Acceptance.<br /> I notice in The Author for April a letter<br /> from Mr. Herbert D. Williams saying that<br /> Great Thoughts invariably pays for articles on<br /> acceptance. I regret to say that this is not my<br /> experience. An article of mine was accepted at<br /> the end of 1893, and appeared in February, 1894.<br /> I accordingly asked for payment, which was<br /> refused, because I had not stipulated for it when<br /> I sent the article. I was offered instead a bound<br /> volume of Great Thoughts.&#039; This was a &quot; hair of<br /> the dog&quot; with a vengeance. I refused even this.<br /> It was only the second article of mine that had<br /> been accepted, and I felt the injustice most<br /> keenly. H. Stanley Tayler.<br /> OBITUARY.<br /> SIR MONIER MONIER - WILLIAMS,<br /> K.C.I.E., Boden Professor of Sanscrit in<br /> the University of Oxford since i860, whose<br /> Sanscrit-English dictionary (which occupied him<br /> for twenty years) and other works are well known<br /> to every Sanscrit student, died at Cannes on<br /> April 10, in his eightieth year.<br /> Mr. Edmund Sheridan Purcell, the biographer<br /> of Cardinal Manning, died on April 12, aged 76.<br /> He has left in manuscript, almost completed<br /> (says the Academy), a biography of Ambrose de<br /> Lisle, the prototype of Eustace de Lyle in<br /> &quot;Coningsby.&quot;<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 285 (#297) ############################################<br /> <br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> 285<br /> BOOK TALE.<br /> EROM copyright novels at 6d., the step has<br /> soon been taken to copyright novels at id.<br /> Messrs. Pearson are about to issue a series<br /> at this price, consisting of works by Ouida, John<br /> Oliver Hobbes, Mr. Robert Buchanan, Mr. Grant<br /> Allen, Rita, Mrs. Hungerford, Mr. Louis Becke,<br /> Mr. Fergus Hume, Mr. Clark Russell, Mrs.<br /> Hodgson Burnett, and other writers. The same<br /> firm have projected also another series of penny<br /> books, such as &quot;How to be Happy though<br /> Married,&quot; &quot;Helen&#039;s Babies,&quot; &quot;Trooper Peter<br /> Halket,&quot; &amp;c.<br /> With regard to the forthcoming biography of<br /> Mrs. Lynn Linton, Mr. G. S. Layard asks<br /> owners of letters, portraits, or other material<br /> connected with the subject. to be kind enough to<br /> forward them to him at Lorraine Cottage,<br /> Malvern, promising that these will be taken care<br /> of and returned as soon as he has done with<br /> them.<br /> Mr. Rudyard Kipling, having sufficiently<br /> recovered from his illness to be able to work,<br /> is revising a privately-printed volume of letters,<br /> and making sundry additions to them in view of<br /> their publication. This work will be called<br /> &quot;From Sea to Sea,&quot; and among its contents will<br /> be found Mr. Kipling&#039;s &quot;Letters of Marque&quot;<br /> and &quot;City of Dreadful Night,&quot; both of which<br /> were published here some years ago and imme-<br /> diately withdrawn on account of difficulties con-<br /> cerning the copyright.<br /> Mr. Stephen Crane is at work on a new novel.<br /> Before this appears, however, the public will get<br /> a new volume of verse from Mr. Crane, entitled<br /> &quot;War is Kind.&quot;<br /> The late Sir Benjamin Ward Richardson left<br /> virtually completed a series of biographies of<br /> leaders of medicine, and these are now about to<br /> be published by Messrs. Hutchinson in two<br /> volumes, called &quot; Disciples of .^sculapius.&quot;<br /> Mr. Lewis Melville has completed his &quot;Life of<br /> Thackeray,&quot; and the work, which has occupied<br /> him ten years, will be ready in a few days. It<br /> consists of two volumes, and will be the first<br /> complete biography of Thackeray. Meanwhile,<br /> the splendid Biographical edition of Thackeray<br /> has just been completed by the publication of the<br /> thirteenth volume. This edition, of course, is<br /> unique by reason of the biographical introduc-<br /> tions contributed by the novelist&#039;s daughter, Mrs.<br /> Ritchie.<br /> &quot;Curiosities of Light and Sight,&quot; by Mr.<br /> Shelford Bidwell, F.R.S., will be published in a<br /> few days by Messrs. Swan Sonnenschein and Co.<br /> It is illustrated with diagrams, and treats of<br /> structural defects of the eye, optical illusions, and<br /> various recently-observed phenomena of vision.<br /> Mrs. Gertrude Atherton is engaged on a new<br /> novel. Earlier forthcoming novels include-<br /> &quot;England&#039;s Peril,&quot; by Mr. William Le Queux;<br /> &quot;The Stepmother,&quot; by Mrs. Alexander; &quot;Twice<br /> Dead,&quot; by Miss Adeline Sergeant; &quot;A Name to<br /> Conjure With,&quot; by John Strange Winter.<br /> One of the most important publications during<br /> April was Dr. Douglas Hyde&#039;s &quot; Literary History<br /> of Ireland.&quot; The present literary movement in<br /> that country has also given birth to a small<br /> volume of articles, by Mr. W. B. Yeats, Mr. John<br /> Eglinton, &quot; A. E.,&quot; and Mr. William Larminie,<br /> entitled &quot; The Literary Ideal in Ireland,&quot; which<br /> the same publisher will shortly have ready. These<br /> articles appeared originally in a Dublin paper.<br /> In his new story, &quot;The Violet Flame,&quot; Mr.<br /> Fred. T. Jane is combining &quot;with a thrilling<br /> love story the development of some uncanny<br /> scientific discoveries, the result of which is the<br /> destruction of the world by a catastrophe of un-<br /> paralleled horror.&quot; The story is to appear in<br /> the English Mechanic.<br /> The American Authors&#039; Guild has changed its<br /> name to the Society of American Authors. The<br /> following are the recently elected officers and<br /> managers of the society :—President, Rastus S.<br /> Ransom; vice-presidents, Mrs. Julia Ward Howe,<br /> General Lew Wallace, Dr. Thomas Dunn English,<br /> Hubert Howe Bancroft, Mrs. Ellen Hardin Wal-<br /> worth, and Miss Grace Denio Litchfield; treasurer<br /> and counsel, Morris Patterson Ferris; secretary,<br /> John Beverly Robinson.<br /> &quot;Rita&#039;s&quot; new novel will be produced early<br /> this month. It is entitled &quot;An Old Rogue&#039;s<br /> Tragedy.&quot;<br /> &quot;Pictures of Travel,&quot; Mr. Mackenzie Bell&#039;s<br /> recent volume of poems, has been favourably<br /> received by the critics. It has also been well<br /> received by the public. Including the copyright<br /> edition in&quot; the United States, 2000 copies have<br /> been printed.<br /> &quot;Calumnies&quot; is the title of the new novel by<br /> Mrs. E. M. Davy (author of &quot; A Prince of Como,&quot;<br /> &quot;A Daughter of Earth,&quot; &amp;c.), which Messrs.<br /> Arthur Pearson will publish the first week in<br /> May.<br /> A series of China stories by the author of<br /> &quot;The Shen&#039;s Pigtail &quot; will appear in the English<br /> Illustrated Magazine under the title of &quot;Chips<br /> of China.&quot;<br /> &quot;English Roses &quot; is the title of the latest book<br /> of poems from F. Harald Williams, B.A. It is<br /> <br /> <br /> ## p. 286 (#298) ############################################<br /> <br /> 286<br /> THE AUTHOR.<br /> published at 6*. by Messrs. Simpkiu, Marshall,<br /> and Co. It is a volume containing some<br /> 600 pages. The book is divided into six sections,<br /> as follows: 1, English Roses; 2, Blood and Iron;<br /> 3, Laughing Philosophy; 4, Euphrasy and Rue;<br /> 5, Brake and Brier; and 6, Palms and Passion<br /> Flowers.<br /> &quot;Songs of Hope and Love,&quot; by F. \V. Pitt,<br /> has just been published by Messrs. S. W. Part-<br /> ridge and Co. (price 2s. 6rf.). These poems have<br /> been well reviewed by various papers, and should<br /> have a ready sale.<br /> The title of Mrs. Richmond&#039;s new book pub-<br /> lished by Messrs. Longmans should have been<br /> described in last month&#039;s &quot;Book Talk,&quot; as<br /> &quot;Through Boyhood to Manhood; a Plea for<br /> Ideals.&quot; Price 2s. 6d.<br /> &quot;The Story of &quot;William Penn,&quot; by Frances E.<br /> Cooke, has just been published by Messrs.<br /> Headley Bros. Price is. 6d.<br /> Messrs. W. Clowes and Sons have now ready<br /> &quot;The Officer&#039;s Field Note and Sketch Book and<br /> Reconnaissance Aide-Memoire,&quot; by Lieut.-Col. E.<br /> Gunter. 6*. 6d. net.<br /> &quot;Marianna and other Stories,&quot; the title of a<br /> new book which Mr. Burleigh will immediately<br /> publish for &quot; Georgette Agnew.&quot;<br /> An original poem in the style of the &quot;Lady<br /> of the Lake,&quot; by the author of the &quot;Rani of<br /> Jhansi&quot; and other Eastern works, will shortly be<br /> published by Mr. Burleigh. The tale is a<br /> thrilling one, illustrating the state of unrest in<br /> Western India during the downfall of the rule of<br /> the Moguls at Delhi, and giving graphic descrip-<br /> tions of female infanticide, sati (widow-burning),<br /> and other native manners and customs.<br /> In his &quot; Fragments of an Autobiography,&quot; Mr.<br /> Felix Moscheles records his early impressions, and<br /> introduces episodes of the artist&#039;s life in Paris.<br /> He sketches many celebrities in the musical,<br /> artistic, and political world he has frequented,<br /> and devotes special chapters to his trips to<br /> America, the Paris Commune, his godfather Felix<br /> Mendelssohn, and to Mazzini, Rossini, and<br /> Browning.<br /> Messrs. George Newnes (Limited) have nearly<br /> ready for publication a new standard work entitled<br /> &quot;The International Geography.&quot; Seventy authors<br /> have collaborated in its production, including<br /> the leading geographers and travellers of Europe<br /> and America; the work has been planned and<br /> edited by Dr. H. R. Mill, who also wrote the chapter<br /> on the United Kingdom. Among the authors<br /> are Dr. Fridtjof Nansen (Arctic Regions), Mr.<br /> F. C. Selous (Rhodesia), Sir Clements Markham,<br /> F.R.S. (Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru), Professor<br /> A. Kirchoff (German Empire), Professor W. M.<br /> Davis (United States), Professors de Lapparent<br /> and Ravenau (France), Sir John Murray.<br /> F.R.S. (Antarctic Regions), Count Pfeil<br /> (German Colonies), Mr. James Bryce, M.P.<br /> (the Boer Republics), Sir H. H. Johnston, the<br /> late Sir Lambert Playfair, Sir F. J. Goldsmid,<br /> Sir Martin Conway, Sir George S. 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