https://historysoa.com/files/original/5/509/1905-10-01-The-Author-16-1.pdf 6fef1330543ec5bc8bc0a044c84e89be PDF Text Text ���������������������������������� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Author Subject The topic of the resource <em>The Author</em> Description An account of the resource A digitised run of the Society of Authors' monthly periodical, <em>The Author</em>, 1890<span>–</span>1914, made available together for the first time.<br /><br />Currently users can browse issues and <a href="https://historysoa.com/items/browse?search=&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Bjoiner%5D=and&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=51&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&amp;advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Index&amp;collection=&amp;type=&amp;tags=&amp;exhibit=&amp;date_search_term=&amp;submit_search=Search+For+Items&amp;sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CTitle">indices</a> (not available for all volumes). Full text search for all issues, and other additional search functionality, will be added in 2022. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1890–1914 Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context The-Author-Issues Publication Date The date of an event (in YYYY, YYYY-MM or YYYY-MM-DD format) 1905-10-01 Volume 16 Issue 1 Pages Page range in volume 1–32 Ngram Date Version of the date in YYYYMMDD format for use by the Ngram plugin 19051001 Ngram Text Version of the text with no HTML formatting for use by the Ngram plugin Che Huthbor. (The Organ of the Incorporated Society of Authors. Monthly.) FOUNDED BY SIR WALTER BESANT. You. XVI.—No. 1. TELEPHONE NUMBER : 374 VICTORIA. TELEGRAPHIC ADDRESS : AUTORIDAD, LONDON. ____ + > —__ NOTICES. —_-—+—_ OR the opinions expressed in papers that are K signed or initialled the authors alone are responsible. None of the papers or para- graphs must be taken as expressing the opinion of the Committee unless such is especially stated to be the case. Tux Editor begs to inform members of the Authors’ Society and other readers of 7’he Author that the cases which are from time to time quoted in The Author are cases that have come before the notice or to the knowledge of the Secretary of the Society, and that those members of the Society who desire to have the names of the publishers concerned can obtain them on application. See List of Members. Tux List of Members of the Society of Authors published October, 1902, at the price of 6d., and the elections from October, 1902, to July, 1903, as a supplemental list, at the price of 2d., can now be obtained at the offices of the Society. They will be sold to members or associates of the Society only. RUS GS SEE The Pension Fund of the Society. Tux Trustees of the Pension Fund met at the Society’s Offices in April, 1905, and having gone carefully into the accounts of the fund, decided to invest a further sum. They have now pur- chased £200 Egyptian Government Irrigation Trust 4 per cent. Certificates, bringing the invest- ments of the fund to the figures set out below. Vou. XVI. OcroBER ist, 1908. [PRIcE SIXPENCE. This is a statement of the actual stock ; the money value can be easily worked out at the current price of the market :— Consols 24 %....cceceeccsreeceeceecesenees £1000 0 0 Thocalk Lioans..<...-.--..--.-:--+-- oe 500 0 0 Victorian Government 3 % Consoli- dated Inscribed Stock ............++- 291 19 11 War Loam .:..-.-.-<...--.) sess 201.9 8 London and North Western 3 % Deben- ture SlOCK <.2..--5..0. eee eee ee 250 0 0 Egyptian Government Irrigation Trust 4% Certificates . 200 0 90 Pothl 3.i.055e oe. £2,448 9 2 Subscriptions, 1905. £ Ss. a, Jan. 12, Anonymous : 0 2 6 June 16, Teignmouth-Shore, the Rev. Canon. : : : : ol 120 July 13, Dunsany, the Right Hon. the Lord . . : ‘ ° Donations, 1905. Middlemas, Miss Jean Bolton, Miss Anna 24, Barry, Miss Fanny . 27, Bencke, Albert . 28, Harcourt-Roe, Mrs. Feb. 18, French-Sheldon, Mrs. Feb. 21, Lyall, Sir Alfred, P.C. Mar. 28, Kirmse, Mrs. April19, Hornung, EH. W. . May 7, Wynne, C. Whitworth May 16, Alsing, Mrs. J. E. May 17, Anonymous . : June 6, Drummond, Hamilton July 28, Potter, the Rev. J. Hasluck ——___—_—_—<>—_+______—_ COMMITTEE NOTES. ee HE last meeting of the committee before the vacation was held on Monday, July 10th, at 4 p.m. After the minutes had been signed, the election of members was proceeded with. Nine members and ten associates were admitted to Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan a Coo.o Cc oOo 0 i mW ONCOCOCOCOCOUAnNe 2 bo OWwkFournorocococe 0 0 0 0 2 THE AUTHOR. the lists of the society, bringing the total elections for the current year up to 137. The committee then voted to the chairman the usual powers to act in cases of emergency during the vacation. Further evidence was placed before the com- mittee on a matter that had been discussed at a previous meeting—the general lien claimed by printers and binders—and counsel’s opinion, which the Association of Wholesale Stationers had sub- mitted for their perusal, was carefully considered. With all the evidence before them the committee did not see that they would be justified in taking up the case. A curious contract which had been made be- tween a representative of Messrs. Ward, Lock & Co., in Melbourne, backed with the authority of the London house and a member of the society, together with the correspondence, was read by the secretary, and the committee decided to print a full statement of the case in Zhe Author. In June the committee decided to take coun- sel’s opinion on some difficult points of law con- nected with the publication of an author’s work and an author's name. ‘This opinion was read. As it was distinctly adverse to the claims of the author, the committee, agreeing with counsel’s opinion, regretted that they were unable to take action on behalf of the author. The secretary of the George Crabbe Celebration had expressed a wish in a letter laid before the committee that the society should be formally represented. The celebration would be held at Aldeburgh in September. The committee decided to ask Mr. Austin Dobson and Mr. Edward Clodd to attend as representatives of the society. Mr. Clodd has consented to act, but Mr. Austin Dobson, owing to other engagements, will be unable to attend. There were some other matters either of small importance or of such a nature as to render it inadvisable to publish the details at the present time. Two county court cases were sanctioned by the chairman during the month of June, subject to the favourable opinion of the society’s solicitors, and to their being able to obtain satis- factory evidence in support of the author’s claim. —1 <9 Cases. : SINCE the publication of The Author in July there have been twenty cases in the secretary’s hands. This is below the average, but during the vacation months the business at the office and in the literary world is quiet. There have been two cases for infringement of copyright. The first case the society was unable to take up owing to the fact that the advice of the solicitors was against action. The second case was in Germany, where a publisher had produced a translation of a story by one of the members of the society without his sanction or contract, and bound it up with other stories not written by the member. The statement on the binding was such as would lead the public to sup- pose that the whole work was from the pen of the member whose rights had been infringed. This case was of some importance, as it occurred out of England, and there have been recently through the society’s office other cases in foreign coun- tries. In answer to an application made by the secretary the publisher made an offer of a money payment, which the author had no desire to accept ; but on the author demanding from the publisher an ample apology and a promise that the volume be re-bound in a manner which should not convey a false impression to the public, the apology was promptly made and the promise given. This termi- nation is very satisfactory from every point of view, for the wider the influence of the society extends the greater will be the protection which it can afford to its members. There have been twelve cases—almost half the total number—for money due and unpaid. Of these nine have been successful, the remaining three have failed owing to the bankruptcy of the papers. Two of the claims were against Vanity Fair, which was in bankruptcy, but which has now been taken over by Messrs. Harmsworth. Two claims for accounts were placed in the secretary’s hands. The accounts have been rendered, and the money paid. There was one case for money and accounts under a bankruptcy in the United States. The progress of bankruptcy proceedings appears to be as lengthy in the States as in England, and although the liquidation has been proceeding for some time, the final settlement has not yet been completed. Accounts have been rendered, but no money has been paid. There have been three cases for the return of MSS. In two the applica- tion of the secretary has been successful, and it is hoped that a satisfactory result may be obtained in the third case also, although it has not yet ter- minated. One dispute which has occurred with regard to an agreement, is still in the course of negotiation. The total result therefore may be reckoned satis- factory, as the majority of cases have been entirely successful. The action takenin the above matters was taken by the secretary, who conducted the negotiations, but in three other disputes it has been necessary to place the conduct in the hands of the society’s lawyers. One, relating to an infringement of copyright, is still in course of settlement ; one for money and accounts has been unfortunately  THE AUTHOR. terminated by the bankruptcy of the defendant. One most important case has been taken in the French courts. The committee found it necessary to take counsel’s opinion in the first instance, from a French lawyer, and finally, counsel’s opinion, being in favour of action, the matter was placed in the hands of a French solicitor. The con- nection between the English Society of Authors and the Société des Gens de Lettres has enabled the committee to carry the matter through with expedition, and it is to be hoped in the end with a satisfactory result. ‘This connection enabled the English society to place the case in the hands of the lawyers of the French society, who, most conversant with the French copyright law, are, therefore, the most fitted to take action on its behalf. July Elections. Basevi, Col. C. E.. 25, Earl’s Court Square, S.W. Davies, Edwin. . 14, Bridge Street, Brecon. Dunsany, The Right Carlton Club. Hon. The Lord : Foster, Miss Bertha The Red House, Bar- Clementia : : ham, Canterbury. Gouldsbury, H. C. . 2, Brompton Square, S.W. The Manor House Col- tishall, near Norwich. Hachblock, Miss Emily. Harvey, Miss Edith M. Huggard, Dr. W. R. H. B. M. Consul, Davos Platz, Switzerland. 8, Mornington Avenue Mansions, West Ken- sington, W. 28, Abingdon Villas, Kensington. 115, Strand W.C. 24, Belsize Park, Hamp- stead, N. W. Kingshurst, Paignton, South Devon. Lee, Miss Elizabeth Lynch, Frances Magdalen Magnus, George G. . McChesney, Miss Dora Greenwell Morrison, E.W. Muir, Ward . Crouch, Boro’ Green, Kent. Murphy, Miss Agnes G. c/o National Bank of Australasia, 123, Bishopsgate Street Within, E.C. Potter, The Rev. Canon J. Hasloch Toynbee Paget, M.A., D, Litt., Oxon. Yeats, W. B. Fiveways, Bucks, 18, Woburn Buildings, Euston Road, N.W. Burnham, BOOKS PUBLISHED BY MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY, ———+—— (in the following list we do not propose to give more than the titles, prices, publishers, etc., of the books enumerated, with, in special cases, such particulars as may serve to explain the scope and purpose of the work. Members are requested to forward information which will enable the Editor to supply particulars. ) ARCHITECTURE. STONE GARDENS. With practical Hints on the Paving and Planting of them. By Rose Haiag THOMAS. 143 x 103. Simpkin Marshall. 7s. 6d. n. BIOGRAPHY. MEL. B. SPuRR. His Life, Works, Writings, and Recitations. By H. A. SpurR. 74 x 5. 235 pp. A. Brown. LADY KNIGHT’s LETTERS FROM FRANCE AND ITALY, 1776—1795. Edited by Lapy ExLLiotr DRAkg, and published by A. HUMPHREYS. 10s. n. MICHAEL DE MonTAIGNE. By EDWARD DOWDEN, LL.D. (FRENCH MEN oF LETTERS. Edited by ALEXANDER Jessup. Lirr.p.) 7? x 5. 383 pp. Lippincott. 6s. n. THE LIFE or CHARLES LAMB. Two yols. By E. V. Lucas. 9 x 6. 400 & 429 pp. Methuen. 21s. n. CLASSICAL. THE GEORGICS OF VIRGIL. Translated Verse. By LoRD BURGHCLERE. 88 x 7, 195 pp. Murray. 10s. 6d. n. DRAMA. MOLLENTRAVE ON WoMEN. A Comedy in Three Acts. By ALFRED Surro. 7} x 4$. 86 pp. French. 1s. 6d. n. ECONOMICS. THE PRACTICAL BOOK-KEEPER AND ACCOUNTANTS’ Guipr. By JoHN ScouLLER. 84 x 5}. 217 pp. Simpkin Marshall. 5s. EDUCATIONAL. Tue LitTtLE Book oF HEALTH AND COURTESY. By P. A. BARNETT. For Boys and Girls. 6 x 4. 24 pp. Longmans. 3d. Horace. OpESI., IL, III., IV. (Blackie’s Latin Tests.) Edited by W.H. D.Rouss, Lirr.D. 64 x 44. 125 + 111 pp. Blackie. 8d. each. LittLE Frencu Fork. A First Book in French, for Little Children. With Illustrations. Second Edition into English Second edition. enlarged. Horace Marshall & Son. 9 x 6}. 2s. First Frence Boor. By D. Mackay and F.J. CURTIS. 7k x 4%. 170 pp. Whittaker. 1s. n. FICTION. HuGH RENDAL. By LIONEL PORTMAN. 7} x 5. 304 pp. Alston Rivers. 6s. THE MAID OF THE RIVER. 7% x 51. 419pp. John Long. 6s. A Jay or Iraty. By BERNARD CAPES. 7} x 4. 316 pp. METHUEN. 6s. THE ROMANCE OF LOHENGRIN. Opera. By BERNARD CAPES. 6s. THe CONFLICT OF OWEN PRYTHERCH. By WM. GALLICHAN (“Geoffrey Mortimer ’’). 75 x 43. 300 pp. Edinburgh : Morton. London: Simpkin Marshall. 6s. Fortoune’s Favourite. By KATHERINE TYNAN. 72 x 42. 312 pp. White. 6s. By M. 8S. CAMPBELL PRAED. Founded on Wagner's 8 x 5}. 271 pp. Dean. THE AUTHOR. PLAYING THE KNAVE. By FLORENCE WARDEN. 7} x 438, 317 pp. Laurie. 6s. Mrs. ALLMERE’S ELOPEMENT. 74 x 49. 316 pp. Nash. 6s. THE KrnG’s MESSENGER. By Louis TRAcYy. 7% x 43. 312 pp. White. 6s. THE EXPLOITS OF JO. SALIS. WILLIAM GREENER. 7% x 5. Blackett. 6s. THE MARQUIS OF PUTNEY. By RICHARD MAarsuH. 7% x 5. 309 pp. Methuen. — 6s, THE WHITE LaDy, By MAY CROMMELIN. 7} x 5. 465 pp. John Long. 6s. THE CONQUERING WILL. By SILAS 74 x 5. 324 pp. Warne. 2s. Vivien. By W. B. MAXWELL. 73 x 5. Methuen. 6s. RED 0’ THE FEUD. 342 pp. Werner Laurie. 6s. THE LOST PIBROCH AND OTHER SHEILING STORIES. By NEIL MuNRO. 5th Edition, 74 x 5. 285pp. Black- wood. 3s. 6d. THE PRIDE OF Mrs. BRUNELLE. By ARTHUR H. HOLMES. T. Burleigh. THE FERRYMAN, By HELEN MATHERS. 73 x 5. 309 pp. Methuen. 6s. KNOCK AT A VENTURE. By EDEN PHILLPOTTS. 73 x 5. 312 pp. Methuen. 6s. THE QUEEN’Ss MAN. By ELEANOR C. PRICE. 73 x 5. 319 pp. Constable. 6s. A HIGHLAND WEB. By L. H.SouvTar. 7} x 5, Edinburgh ; Morton. 6s. STANDERTON UNDER MARTIAL LAw. By EmILy OLIVIA CAROLIN. 64 x 3%. 171 pp. Drane. 1s. THE PATIENT MAN. By PERCY WHITE. 7} x 5. 312 pp. Methuen. 6s. THE PASSPORT. Methuen. 6s. THE HoUsE BY THE RIVER. By FLORENCE WARDEN. 73 x 5. 309 pp. Unwin. 6s. A SERVANT OF THE PUBLIC. 7? x 43. 362 pp. Methuen. 6s. THE Man. By Bram STOKER. Heinemann. 6s. THE FALL OF THE CARDS. 292 pp. Harper. 6s. A Roya Rascau. Episodes in the Career of Colonel Theophilus St. Clair, K.C.B. By Magor ARTHUR GRIFFITHS. 74 x 4%. 309 pp. Unwin. 6s. A QUAKER Woornc. By Mrs. Frep ReyNoLDS, 73 x 44. 314 pp. Hutchinson. 6s. THE MAGNETIC GirL. By RICHARD MarsuH. 126 pp. Long. 6d. THE SEVENTH DREAM. By “Riva.” Hurst & Blackett. 3». 6d. THE DANGER OF INNOCENCE. HAMILTON. Greening. 1s, No. 3, THE SQUARE, 124 pp. Long. 6d. STARVECROW Farm. By STANLEY WEYMAN, 345 pp. Hutchinson. 6s. THE IMPROBABLE IpYLL. By DoroTHEA 73 x 5. 316 pp. Methuen. 6s. A Nine Days’ WonpER. By B. M. Croker. 7 316 pp. Methuen. 6s. A MAKER or History. By E. PHILLIPS OPPENHEIM. 7@ x 5. 315 pp. Ward Lock. 6s. Our JosHUA, RADICAL, OCTOGENARIAN, CELEBRITY, AND Pup-BREEDER, ACCORDING TO ME, HIS WIFE, Edited by THEODORA WILSON WILSON. 64 x 4, 202 pp. Bristol : Arrowsmith. 1s, By CHARLES MARRIOTT. A British Spy. By 296 pp. Hurst & K. Hockine. 527 pp. By HALLIWELL SUTCLIFFE. 74 x 5. 298 pp. By R. Bagot. 72 x 5}. 399 pp. By ANTHONY Hope. 7G x 5, 436 pp. By R. K. WEEKES. 7} x 5. 83 x 5B. 7% x 5. 311 pp. A Flippancy. By Cosmo 4g Popular Edition. 74 x 299 pp. By FLORENCE WARDEN. 83 x 53. 1 x 0. GERARD, xX oOo A MAN AND A Motor anp SUBSEQUENTLY A WIFE. By R. W. BrapsHaw NEEDHAM. Popular Edition. 7; X 5. Clement’s Publishing Co. 6d. n, GARDENING. coe nts i GARDEN DzsIcn. By C. 'HONGER. (Hand- ooks of Practical Gardening). 72 x 51. 90 pp. . 2s. 6d. nét. Le ae CARNATIONS AND Pinks. Edited by E. T. Cook. ( The Country Life” Library.) 91 x 53. 162 pp. Newnes. 3s, 6d. n. HISTORY. YEAR Books oF THE REIGN oF KING EDWARD THE THIRD. Years XVIII. and XIX. Edited and Trans- lated by LUKE OWEN PIKE. 10 x 6}. 616 pp. Wyman. MILITARY. WELLINGTON’S CAMPAIGNS, 1808—1815 ; also Moors’s CAMPAIGN OF CorUNNA, Part IL. 1811—12—13, Banosa to Vittoria, and Invasion of France. By MAJOR-GENERAL C, W. ROBINSON, ©.B. 8} x 53. Rees, Bs. 6d. POETRY. PoErMs. By AUSTIN Dosson (selected). (Dryden Library.) 6x 4. 184 pp. Kegan Paul. 2s. n. DreAM CoME TRUE. By L, Binyon. 28 pp. The Eragny Press. OSRAC, THE SELF SUFFICIENT, By J. M. Stuart Youne. The Heimes Press. 7s. 6d. A NINETEENTH CENTURY IDYLL. & F. Denny, 147, Strand. 7k x 44. By N. ARLING. A. ls. 6d. and 3s. POLITICAL. THE CANADIAN ANNUAL REVIEW OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, Fourth year of issue. By J.C. Hopxrns, F.S.S. 9 x 6. 630 pp. Toronto: The Annual Review Publishing Co. London: P. 8. King. 12s. 6d. n. REPRINTS. DIARY AND LETTERS OF MADAME D’ ARBLAY (1778—1840). As Edited by her niece Charlotte Barrett, with Preface and Notes. By Austin Dosson. Insix volumes. Vol. VI. 9 x 5}. 502 pp. Macmillan. 10s. 6d. n. A SIXTEENTH CENTURY ANTHOLOGY. Edited by ARTHUR Symons (Red Letter Library). 6 x 4. 468 pp. Blackie. THE RED LETTER SHAKESPEARE. Ldited by HE. K- CHAMBERS. HENRY THE FIFTH. 61} x 33. 141 pp. Blackie. 1s. 6d. THE LABYRINTH OF THE WORLD AND THE PARADISE OF THE HEART. Edited and Englished by the Counr Lutzow (Temple Classics). 6 xX 4. 366 pp. Dent. ls. 6d. n. THE REIGN OF QUEEN ANNE. By JUSTIN McCARTHY. (The St. Martin’s Library Fine Paper Edition.) 64 x 44. 600 pp. Chatto & Windus. 2s. n. POEMS OF COLERIDGE. Selected and Arranged with an Introduction and Notes. By ARTHUR SYMONS. 7 x 44. 223 pp. Methuen. 2s. 6d. n. SCIENCE. PRECIOUS STONES CONSIDERED IN THEIR SCIENTIFIC AND ARTISTIC RELATIONS. By A, H. CHURCH, F.R.S. New edition. 73 x 5}. 135 pp. Wyman. 2s. 3d. SPORT. The Method at a Glance. 9 x 6. 716 pp. By G. W. Macmillan, GREAT BATSMEN. BELDAM and C. B. Fry. 21s, n.  THE AUTHOR. By G. W. BELDAM AND Illustrated. 141 pp. Newnes. 3s. 6d, n. 83 x 54. GoLr FAULTS. J. H, TAYLOR. THEOLOGY. THESE SAYINGS OF MINE. A Manual on the Beatitudes for Christian People. By F. G. LAVERACK. 7% x 5. 144 pp. A. Brown. TRAVEL. A SRARCH FOR THE MASKED TAWAREKS. By W. J. Harpine King. 8} x 53. 334 pp. Smith Elder. 6s. THE WorRLD OF To-pAy. A Survey of the Lands and Peoples of the Globe as Seen in Travel and Commerce. By A. R. Hope MONCRIEFF. Vol. Il. 102: 7: 266 pp. The Gresham Publishing Co. 8s. n. A WANDERER IN Houianp. By HE. V. Lucas. 309 pp. Methuen. 6s. 7% Xx 5. —————_e—<>—____—_ LITERARY, DRAMATIC, AND MUSICAL NOTES. R. ARTHUR W. A BECKETT, who was VI elected for the fifth time hon. treasurer of the Institute of Journalists at Bourne- mouth, is engaged upon “a book of recent recol- lections” to be called ‘*‘ Ihe First T'wentieth of the Twentieth Century.” Messrs. Brown, Langham & Co. published early last month, Mr. E. H. Lacon Watson’s new volume, entitled “Reflections of a Householder.” The price of the work—a limited edition of which, numbered and signed by the author, and printed on hand-made paper, has also been published—is 3s. 6d. “ Researches in Sinai.” By Prof. W. Flinders Petrie, gives an account of the recent expedition with a large working party, which lived in the desert excavating for some months. The oldest Egyptian sculptures known are reproduced, the geology and ancient ruins are described, the only temple known for Semitic worship was fully explored and is illustrated in detail, the conditions of the Exodus are discussed with a new view of the Israelite census, and the life of the Bedouin of Sinai and the Egyptian desert is noticed. The book,which is published by Mr. John Murray, contains about two hundred illustrations. Mr. J. W. Arrowsmith published in August a book of character and political sketches (1s), entitled “Our Joshua, Radical, Octogenarian. Celebrity and Pup-breeder. According to his wife, and edited by Theodora Wilson Wilson.” Mr. G. H. Grierson has been awarded the “ Prix Volney” by the Institut de France for the Linguistic Survey of India, and for his last work, “The Languages of India.” The Société Asiatique of Paris has simultancously elected him a “ Membre 5 months member ago Mr. Associé Etranger.” A few of the Grierson was elected an hon. American Oriental Society. Col. R. Elias’ work “ The Tendency of Religion ” (Chapman and Hall) shows the gradual develop- inent of mutual understanding with regard to “religion ” among thinking men of all nations, and the consequent convergence of the various forms of religion, and insistence on their good and essential parts only—hence the very sure, though slow, decay of myths, narrow dogma, and exclusive creeds. “The Spring’s Approach, and Other Thoughts of Life” is the title of a collection of poems by Charles Cowen. The author’s aim has been, by sudden changes and contrasts of style, to minimise monotony and weariness in the reading as far as possible. Messrs. Dawbarn and Ward have recently pub- lished, at the price of 1s, nett, a handbook entitled ’ “Photography for the Press.” Its purport is to instruct the aspirant as to the best markets for his work, and the best means of obtaining access to those markets. It contains, in addition, infor- mation concerning the markets for picture postcard business. «Two Friends of Old England, being Mirabeau and Gambetta, and J. Bonhomme, in a nutshell, by ‘Saxon Norman’ (Arthur Pavitt and Baron de Béville),” is the title of a work published by Mr. Effingham Wilson at the price of 2s. 6d. The history of the entente cordiale is the main purpose of the authors. It is traced back to Mirabeau’s journey to London (1783—1784) where he sojourned under the roof of Sir Gilbert Elliott, the future Lord Minto. The letter of the great orator and statesman to Wilberforce, written in 1790, is given, also the speech of Leon Gambetta, of July, 1882, bidding his countrymen never to break the English alliance. The book is prefaced by Richard Harris, K.C., the editor of the reminiscences of Lord Brampton. The stirring events in Odessa should create a special interest in two books published not long ago, the scenes of action in both being in this Russian port. ‘They are from the pen of Mr. Jaakoff Prelooker, who was head-master of a Government school in Odessa, and bear the titles of ‘ Rabbi Shalom on the Shores of the Black Sea” (Simpkin, Marshall) and ‘“ Under the Czar and Queen Victoria: Tne Experience of a Russian Reformer” (James Nisbet). The author tells of a reform movement originated by himself in Odessa, and sheds many side-lights on local life, police, relations between Christians and Jews, etc. Both books are fully illustrated, the frontispiece of “Rabbi Shalom on the Black Sea” being a striking view of Odessa Harbour, showing the long elevated 1 Raa ALLTEL SAS I I SS RTE A RSTO 4 THE AUTHOR. PLAYING THE KNAVE. By FLORENCE WARDEN. 7} x 432. 317 pp. Laurie. 6s. Mrs. ALLMERE’S ELOPEMENT. 74 x 43. 316 pp. Nash. 6s. THE Kine’s MESSENGER. By Louis TRAcy. 312 pp. White. 6s. THE EXPLOITS OF JO. SALIS. WILLIAM GREENER. 7} X 5. Blackett. 6s. THE Marquis OF PUTNEY. By RiIcHARD MARSH. 72 x 5. 309 pp. Methuen. 6s. THE WHITE Lapy. By MAY CROMMELIN. 7} x 5. 465 pp. John Long. 6s. THE CONQUERING WILL. By Sinas K. 74 x 5. 324 pp. Warne. 2s. Vivien. By W. B. MAXWELL. 7} x 5, Methuen. 6s. RED 0’ THE FEUD. 342 pp. Werner Laurie. 6s. THE Lost PIBROCH AND OTHER SHEILING STORIES. By NEIL Munro. 5th Edition. 74 x 5. 285pp. Black- wood. 3s. 6d. THE PRIDE OF Mrs, BRUNELLE, By ARTHUR H. HOLMEs. T. Burleigh. THE FERRYMAN, By HELEN MATHERS. 73 x 5. 309 pp. Methuen. 6s. KNOCK AT A VENTURE. By EDEN PHILLPOTTS. 312 pp. Methuen. 6s. THE QUEEN’S Man. By ELEANOR C, PRICE. 319 pp. Constable. 6s. A HIGHLAND WEB. By L. H.Sourar. 73 x 5. Edinburgh : Morton. 6s. STANDERTON UNDER MARTIAL LAw. By Eminy OLIvIA CAROLIN. 6} x 32. 171 pp. Drane. 1s. THE PATIENT MAN. By PERCY WHITE. 73 x 5. Methuen. 6s. THE PASSPORT. Methuen. 6s, THE HOUSE BY THE RIVER. 7% xX 5. 309 pp. A SERVANT OF 7? x 43. 362 pp. Methuen. 6s. THE MAN. By BRAM STOKER. Heinemann. 6s. THE FALL OF THE CARDS. 292 pp. Harper. 6s. A Roya Rascau. Episodes in the Career of Colonel Theophilus St. Clair, K.C.B. By Magor ARTHUR GRIFFITHS. 74 x 4%. 309 pp. Unwin. 6s. A QUAKER Wooing. By Mrs. FRED REYNOLDS. 73 x 43. 314 pp. Hutchinson. 6s, THE MAGNETIC GirL. By RICHARD MarsH. 126 pp. Long. 6d. THE SEVENTH DREAM. By “ RiTA.” Hurst & Blackett. 3». 6d. THE DANGER OF INNOCENCE. HAMILTON. Greening. ls. No. 3, THE SQUARE. 124 pp. Long. 6d. STARVECROW Farm. By STANLEY WEYMAN. 345 pp. Hutchinson. 6s, THE IMPROBABLE IDyLL. By DoRoTHEA 73 x 5. 316 pp. Methuen. 6s. A NINE Days’ WonpER. By B. M. CRoKER. 316 pp. Methuen. 6s. A Maker or History. By E. PHILLIPS OPPENHEIM. 72 x 5. 315 pp. Ward Lock. 6s. Ovr JosHuA, RADICAL, OCTOGENARIAN, CELEBRITY, AND PUp-BREEDER, ACCORDING TO ME, HIS WIFE. Edited by THEODORA WILSON WILSON. 64 x 4, 202 pp. Bristol : Arrowsmith. 1s, By CHARLES MARRIOTT. 7% x 43. A British Spy. By 296 pp. Hurst & HOCKING. 527 pp. By HALLIWELL SUTCLIFFE. 74 x 5. 2x 5. 7% xX 5. 298 pp. 312 pp. By R. Bagot. 72 x 5}. 399 pp. By FLORENCE WARDEN. Unwin. 6s. THE PUBLIC. By ANTHONY HoPE, 72 x «5, 436 pp. By R. K. WEEKES. 7} x 5. 8B Xx 5g. 7? x 5. 311 pp. A Flippaney. By Cosmo Popular Edition. 74 x 43. 299 pp. By FLORENCE WARDEN, 83 x 53. 73 5 g x by GERARD. 7% x 5. A MAN AND A MorTor Anp SUBSEQUENTLY A WIFE. By R. W. BrapsHAW NEEDHAM. Popular Edition. 7% X 5. Clement’s Publishing Co. 6d. n. GARDENING. THE Book OF GARDEN DEsiGn. By C. THONGER. (Hand- books of Practical Gardening). 72 x 54. 90 pp. Lane. 2s. 6d. nét. ; CARNATIONS AND PINKS. Edited by E. T. Coox. (“ The oe Life” Library.) 94 x 53. 162 pp. Newnes. 3s. 6d. n. HISTORY. YEAR BOOKS OF THE REIGN OF KING EDWARD THE THIRD. Years XVIII. and XIX. Edited and Trans- lated by LUKE OWEN PIKE. 10 x 64. 616 pp. Wyman. MILITARY. WELLINGTON’S CAMPAIGNS, 1808—1815; also MoorrE’s CAMPAIGN OF CORUNNA, Part II., 1811—12—13. Banosa to Vittoria, and Invasion of France. By Hip aes ogee C. W. ROBINSON, C.B. 83 x 53. Rees. 3s. 6d. POETRY. Poems. By AusTIN Dogson (selected). (Dryden Library.) 6x 4. 184 pp. Kegan Paul. 2s. n. DREAM COME TRUE. By L, Bryyon. The Eragny Press. OSRAC, THE SELF SUFFICIENT, By J. M. Stuart Youne. The Heimes Press. 7s. 6d. A NINETEENTH CENTURY IDYLL. & F. 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LUCAS. 72 xX 5. 309 pp. Methuen. 6s. a LITERARY, DRAMATIC, AND MUSICAL NOTES. —1—<—+— R. ARTHUR W. A BECKETT, who was I elected for the fifth time hon. treasurer of the Institute of Journalists at Bourne- mouth, is engaged upon “a book of recent recol- lections” to be called “ Ihe First T'wentieth of the Twentieth Century.” Messrs. Brown, Langham & Co. published early last month, Mr. E. H. Lacon Watson’s new volume, entitled “Reflections of a Householder.” The price of the work—a limited edition of which, numbered and signed by the author, and printed on hand-made paper, has also been published—is 3s. 6d. “Researches in Sinai.” By Prof. W. Flinders Petrie, gives an account of the recent expedition with a large working party, which lived in the desert excavating for some months. The oldest Egyptian sculptures known are reproduced, the geology and ancient ruins are described, the only temple known for Semitic worship was fully explored and is illustrated in detail, the conditions of the Exodus are discussed with a new view of the Israelite census, and the life of the Bedouin of Sinai and the Egyptian desert is noticed. The book,which is published by Mr. John Murray, contains about two hundred illustrations. Mr. J. W. Arrowsmith published in August a book of character and political sketches (1s), entitled “Our Joshua, Radical, Octogenarian. Celebrity and Pup-breeder. According to his wife, and edited by Theodora Wilson Wilson.” Mr. G. H. Grierson has been awarded the “ Prix Volney’”? by the Institut de France for the Linguistic Survey of India, and for his last work, “The Languages of India.” The Société Asiatique of Paris has simultaneously elected him a “ Membre THE AUTHOR. 5 months member ago Mr. Associé Etranger.” A few of the frierson was elected an hon. American Oriental Society. Col. R. Elias’ work “ The Tendency of Religion ” (Chapman and Hall) shows the eradual develop- ment of mutual understanding with regard to “religion ” among thinking men of all nations, and the consequent convergence of the various forms of religion, and insistence on their good and essential parts only—hence the very sure, though slow, decay of myths, narrow dogma, and exclusive creeds. “The Spring’s Approach, and Other Thoughts of Life” is the title of a collection of poems by Charles Cowen. The author’s aim has been, by sudden changes and contrasts of style, to minimise monotony and weariness in the reading as far as possible. Messrs. Dawbarn and Ward have recently pub- lished, at the price of 1s. nett, a handbook entitled ’ “Photography for the Press.” Its purport is to instruct the aspirant as to the best markets for his work, and the best means of obtaining access to those markets. It contains, in addition, infor- mation concerning the markets for picture postcard business. “Two Friends of Old England, being Mirabeau and Gambetta, and J. Bonhomme, in a nutshell, by ‘Saxon Norman’ (Arthur Pavitt and Baron de Béville),” is the title of a work published by Mr. Effingham Wilson at the price of 2s. 6d. Phe history of the entente cordiale is the main purpose of the authors. It is traced back to Mirabeau’s journey to London (1783—1784) where he sojourned under the roof of Sir Gilbert Elliott, the future Lord Minto. The letter of the great orator and statesman to Wilberforce, written in 1790, is given, also the speech of Leon Gambetta, of July, 1882, bidding his countrymen never to break the English alliance. The book is prefaced by Richard Harris, K.C., the editor of the reminiscences of Lord Brampton. The stirring events in Odessa should create a special interest in two books published not long ago, the scenes of action in both being in this Russian port. ‘They are from the pen of Mr. Jaakoff Prelooker, who was _ head-master of a Government school in Odessa, and bear the titles of ‘* Rabbi Shalom on the Shores of the Black Sea” (Simpkin, Marshall) and “Under the Ozar and Queen Victoria: Tne Experience of a Russian Reformer” (James Nisbet). The author tells of a reform movement originated by himself in Odessa, and sheds many side-lights on local life, police, relations between Christians and Jews, etc. Both books are fully illustrated, the frontispiece of “Rabbi Shalom on the Black Sea”’ being a striking view of Odessa Harbour, showing the long elevated 6 THE AUTHOR. railway bridge and other buildings burned during the riots. The 15th September was the seventy-sixth birth- day of a very great man. General Porfirio Diaz has been President of Mexico for thirty years with a short interval of four years, when he was out of office. We understand his life is being written by Mrs. Alec Tweedie (Hurst and Blackett), whose former book, ‘‘ Mexico as I Saw It,” was published three years ago. Mrs.'Tweedie, who was in Mexico last winter again as the guest of the President, is compiling this life with his sanction, and from authentic diaries and documents he placed in her hands for the purpose. Mrs. Tweedie’s work will record the life’s history of a man who was born in obscurity, lived a wildly exciting life as a soldier, played an important part in the history of Maxi- milian and Carlotta, and has now assumed the position of a Perpetual President, and brought his country from chaos and revolution to peace and prosperity. Messrs. Barnicott and Pearce will publish shortly a book by the Rev. W. P. Gresswell, under the title of ‘‘Chapters on the Old Parks and Forests of Somerset.” The aim of the author has been to compile a descriptive and historical account of the Five Forests of Somerset—Mendip, Selwood, Neroche, North Petherton, and Exmoor, together with the Royal Warren of Somerton and the Royal Park (as distinguished from the Forest) of North Petherton. A few chapters explanatory of hunting terms and of the methods of hunting as carried on in former days have been added to the book, the subscription price of which is 10s. 6d. Mr. J. E. Masefield’s book, ‘Sea Life in Nelson’s Time,” published by Messrs. Methuen & Co. recently, deals with the life of the bluejacket aboard our old men-of-war. Hach detail of an ordinary sailor’s working day is considered, and an account is also given of the guns and other weapons which were used in Nelson’s time. Miss Rosa Nouchette Carey’s new novel will be published very shortly under the title of “The Household of Peter.” “A Nineteenth Century Idyll,” by N. Arling, published by Messrs. A. and F. Denny, upholds the cause of women morally and politically. A story for young people entitled ‘ Love’s Golden Thread,” by Edith C. Kenyon, is being published by Messrs. 8. W. Partridge & Oo. The book appeals especially to girls who have to earn their own living. Mr. Basil Tozer contributes an interesting article to the September number of the Monthly Review on “The Increasing Popularity of the Erotic Novel.” Mr. J. M. Barrie, Mr. Almeric FitzRoy, and Mr. Gilbert Murray, have recently joined the council of management of the Stage Society. Mr. A. E. Drinkwater has been appointed secre- tary for the coming season. Full particulars of the society and forms of application for member- ship can be procured from the office, at 9, Arundel Street, Strand, W.C. The following comprise the council of management, 1905-1906 :—J. M. Barrie, Sidney Colvin, the Hon. Everard Feilding, Almeric W. FitzRoy, C.V.O., St. John Hankin, H. A. Hertz, Alderson B. Horne, W. Lee Mathews, Gilbert Murray, Sydney Olivier, C.M.G., Nigel Playfair, Mrs. W. P. Reeves, Bernard Shaw, Mrs. Bernard Shaw, Charles Strachey, Bernard Watkin, Frederick Whelen, Ernest E. 8S. Williams, and W. Hector Thomson, honorary treasurer. Messrs. Constable & Co. announce the publica- tion of ‘The Burford Papers,” under the editorship of the Rev. W. H. Hutton. The correspondence between Samuel Crisp—whose failure as a dramatist caused him to become, to quote Macaulay, “a cynic and a hater of mankind ”—and his sister, Mrs. Sophia Gast, forms the chief contents of the volume. Messrs. Chapman and Hall announce anew edi- tion of Mr.G. H. Perris’s “ Russia in Revolution,” which forms a complete narrative of events down to the conclusion of peace with Japan. Among the additions to the new volume are the substance of many conversations with Father Gapon, a remarkable hitherto unpublished portrait of the latter, and a critical account of the decree establishing an Elective Assembly. Early this month Messrs. Simpkin, Marshall & Co. will publish a work by Mr. F. Carrel, under the title of “An Analysis of Human Motive.” “ The Woman's Agricultural Times” is the title of a quarterly publication now in its sixth volume. It is edited by the Countess of Warwick, and issued by the Studley Castle Agricultural Associa- tion, at Studley Castle, Warwickshire. The magazine, which contains some useful information relating to agricultural pursuits, is published at the price of 6d. “The Gods of Pegania” is the title of an imaginative prose work by Lord Dunsany which will shortly be published by Mr. Elkin Mathews. The book is illustrated with drawings by Mr. Sidney H. Sime, : Messrs. Chapman and Hall will publish this autumn Mrs. Edith E. Cuthell’s new book, a historial work, ‘“ Wilhelmina, Margravine of Baizenth,” in two volumes. Mrs. Cuthell has been permitted special access in the Prussian archives to documents not hitherto made public, and also given permission to reproduce some hitherto unpublished portraits. The book is profusely illustrated. A novel of interest to present and past Oxonians  THE AUTHOR. 7 is to be published in October by Messrs. Chapman and Hall, entitled “The Inseparables,” a modern story of Oxford life by the author of “ John Westa- cott.’ It will be interesting to note Mr. James Baker’s treatment of a story embracing modern undergraduate life and its results. The third edition of “ The Printer’s Handbook,” compiled by Mr. C. T. Jacobi, contains hints and suggestions relating to letterpress and lithographic printing, bookbinding, stationery, process work, etc. In his preface to the editicu Mr. Jacobi claims that although the volume cannot be used as a text book, yet in a general way it will be found useful to students and especially helpful to workers far removed from those centres at which the many commodities and requisites so necessary to printers and the allied trades can be easily obtained. The price of the work is 5s. net. “A Quaker Wooing,” by Mrs. Fred Reynolds, which Messrs. Hutchinson & Co. published in September, is founded on incidents taken from records in the family of the author’s husband. The same writer is publishing this autumn another nevel, entitled “The Making of Michael.” Mr. Geo. Allen is the publisher. “ Village, Town, and Jungle Life in India,” by A. ©. Newcombe, which has recently beer. published by Messrs. Blackwoods, at the price of 12s. 6d. net, whilst touching on India’s Imperial problems, deals more particularly with the daily life of the European who has to spend his best years in our great dependency of the Hast. The Religious Tract Society will publish this month a story for girls, entitled ‘“‘Tender and True,” by L. E. Tiddeman, at the price of 3s. 6d. The long deferred copyright performance of “The Brownie’s Bower,” a three-act cantata- playette by Ellen Collett, music by Natalee Davenport, took place on July 8th at ‘‘ Mayfield,” Pinner, as a pastoral-play, under highly favour- able conditions and in the presence of a number of Press representatives. “The Cash Box,” a one-act play by F. 8. Dean Ballin, was produced at His Majesty’s Theatre on the 3rd of July. Mr. Hall Caine’s dramatic version of his novel “The Prodigal Son” was produced at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, on the evening of September 7th. The Prodigal in Mr. Caine’s play—which was mounted on a very lavish scale—has but few redeeming features. In addition to being a swindler and forger, he is the indirect cause of the death of his father and mother. He repents at the eleventh hour, and, making atonement for his misdemeanours, obtains the forgiveness of his family. ‘The caste includes Mr. George Alexander, Mr. Frank Cooper, Mrs. John Wood and Miss Lily Hall Caine. PARIS NOTES. ——— + — a ISOLEE,” the new novel by René Banzin, A: has no doubt been suggested by the recent events in France. It is a story of the expulsion of the nuns, showing the disastrous results of turning out into the world women who have been accustomed to convent life. It is a pathetic story, and there are charming descriptions of some of the French provinces. The author shows up the excellent work of the Sisters of Sainte-Hildegarde, their devotion to the poor, their love for the children, their simple, contented life when together in their convent home. Uncon- sciously though, perhaps, he also shows up the defects of that system. We have a picture of an only daughter deserting her old father for the supposed salvation of her own soul. The father heroically consents to her departure for the convent, and we have a touching picture of his lonely life and solitary death. When later on the sisters are driven from the convent, we follow each of them to their new homes. The chief interest of the book is centred in the story of the girl Pascale. Her reason for leaving her old father and entering the convent was that she knew herself to be weak and easily influenced, and she argues: Dans le monde je serai mauvaise ou médiocre. Dans le cloitre je pourrais devenir une ame sainte. Unfor- tunately she is driven back into the world again, and the tragedy of her life there takes up a great part of the book. One of the most beautiful pictures given us in this volume is the farewell scene of the five sisters whilst waiting at the station for the various trains which were to take them away from each other. “Les deux sceurs,’ by Paul Bourget, is a psychological study of two sisters of about the same age, but of totally different character and temperament. The story is followed by five or six other psychological studies. “Les beaux jours de Flavien,” by Brada, is a novel of an entirely different character from most of this author’s former ones. It is now published in volume form, after having great success as a serial in the Figaro. “TJ, Aventure de Cabassou,” by M. Paul Brulat, is a rather pathetic story of the tribulations of a simple-minded honest man, who, after being deceived and ridiculed, decides to turn over a new leaf and be less scrupulous himself. Before very long, how- ever, he finds that it is no use struggling against his destiny. In spite of himself he is honest and confiding, and once more he is deceived and his happiness destroyed. He comes to the conclusion that the three phases of nearly every human destiny are that: “On s’illusionne d’abord, on se révolte ensuite, on se soumet enfin.” THE AMTHOR. “ Mes Sentiments et nos idées avant 1870” is another volume of memoirs, in which Madame Juilette Adam treats of the artistic and political life of the last years of the Second Empire. In the artistic world we are told that there was not much fresh talent. There were authors, artists and musical composers, who had already made their name: Victor Hugo, Flaubert, Daudet, Sardon, Coppée, and others. Puvis de Chavaunes, Henner and Manet were doing fine work, and Gounod, Ambroise Thomas, and Meyerbeer producing com- positions destined to add to their fame. As to politics the statesmen of the opposition were in- different to all but home events, and turned a deaf ear to all rumours from without. The book is interesting, treating as it does of a comparatively recent epoch. ‘* Etapes Italiennes,”’ by M. Pierre de Bouchard, contains notices on Byzantine art, on the Forum and the Villa Medicis. The author also treats of Naples and gives the impressions of Mme. de Staél, and Chateaubriand, Lamartine, Shelley and other well-known personages who have visited it. In another study, entitled Naples, the author gives us a description of the city, and an account of its origin and history. ‘“‘ Marie-Caroline, reine des Deux-Siciles (1768- 1814),” by M. André Bonnefons, is an excellent study of the political evolutions of that epoch, giving an idea of the struggles of France against the whole of Europe. Among recent books are the following : “ Brim- borion,” by Jean Rameau; “Le Marchand de déesses,” by M. René Maizeroy ; “ La Domination,” by Mme. la Comtesse Mathieu de Noailles ; “ Le Roman d’une vieille fille,’ by M. Delorme ; “ Mon- sieur Marcel,” by Mme. Marie Thiéry; ‘“ Les Carrosses du roi,” by M. K. Waliszewski ; “ Femme de lettres,” by Mme. Mary Floran; “La Fiancée nouvelle,” by M. Gaston Derys; ‘Le Pére et le Fils,” by M. Antonin Mulé; ‘‘Le Livre de la Houle et de la Volupté” ; by M. Diraison-Seylor ; «Sans Dieu,” by Trilby ; “ Plus fort que la Vie,” by Mme. Marie-Anne de Bovet ; ‘‘ En Wagon,” by Henri Datin, a volume of short stories. ‘“ L’ Autre,” by Georges Bonnamour; “Les Demi-fous,” by M. Michel Corday ; ‘ Waldeck-Rousseau,” by Gaston Deschamps ; ‘‘L’expansion des Boers au XIX siecle,” by M. Déhérain; “Un grand meconnu : Napoleon III.,” by M. Jean Guetary. The forthcoming publication is announced of several volumesof letters by well-known men, among others those of Zola and Fromentin. Marcel Prévost is at work onhis novel “M.et Mme. Moloch,” the scene of which is laid in Germany. Maurice Barrés is writing his notes on Greece, under the title of “‘ Le Voyage & Sparte.” The death of Elisée Reclus is a great loss to the literary and artistic world. His collaboration will be greatly missed by all connected with the University of Brussels, which he helped to found. The professors and students of the University published a circular announcing his death, in which they declared their intention to honour his memory, en propayeant son auvre de fraternité et son ensergnement iminortel. In the Revue des Deux Mondes of July 15th, M. Brunetiére writes on “ Le Mensonge du Pacifisme.” In the Revue des Deux Mondes of August there is an article by René Pinon on the consequences of the Russo-Japanese war and the japonisation of China. M. Benoist explains in another article the reasons which have provoked the secession of Norway. Frédéric Passy replies to M. Brunetiére on the subject of ‘‘ Le Pacifisme.” In the Correspondant of August M. Méziéres gives his memories of L’Université avant 1850. In the Grande Revue of August 15th there is an interesting article by Hélia entitled “ Une Parisienne dans les harems de Constantinople.” In the Quinzaine M. Georges Blondel writes on the various manifestations of Imperialism. An account is given by Captain d’Ollone of .the grand manoeuvres of the Anglo-Indian army near the frontier of Af¢hanistan. In the Qwinzaine of July there is an excellent article by Max Helys on “Selma Lagerlof,” the Swedish authoress. A new quarterly, entitled Vers et Prose, has made its appearance this year. It is a magazine of from one to two hundred pages, which in its first two numbers certainly justifies its claim to be a collection de la haute littérature et du lyrisme en prose el en poesie. Among the contents are some exquisite short sketches by the late Marcel Schwob, a story entitled ‘Le Massacre des Inno- cents,” by Maurice Maeterlinck (which dates from 1885, and is the first work of this author), one of Henri de Regnier’s finest poems, and other articles, stories, and verses by Robert de Souza, Maurice Barrés, Stuart Merrill, Gille, William Morris, Dowson, Paul Fort, Moréas, Gide, Vielé-Griffin, Verhaeren, and other writers. A periodical containing solely such high-class work would stand a poor chance of success in most countries. Fortunately, however, it is written in the French language, and, judging from the long list of sub- scribers in all parts of the world, there seems every probability that the venture will prove a satisfac- tory one. Translations from foreign authors form a part of the programme. The yearly subscrip- tion for the four volumes is eight francs, or the edition de luxe fifty francs. Another new monthly paper which commenced in July is entitled La Poétique. It is a magazine of about thirty pages, giving not only French  THE AUTHOR. a poems, but articles and essays on the poets of various countries, together with original poems by foreign authors, and side by side the translation of them. In the July number there is a study of Spanish poetry by M. de ‘Toro Gomez, illustrated by Spanish poems in the original and in French. ‘There is also an article on Schiller with extracts from his works. In the August number there is a study of an English poet and his works, and another of Echegaray, as well as many articles on French poetry and various poems. It is an excellent idea for giving us some notions of the poetry of different lands. M. William Busnach has completed the scenario of “Madame Bovary,” which wili probably be played at one of the Boulevard Theatres this winter. Mounet-Sully and Pierre Barbier have just com- pleted an important play entitled “La Brute,” which is to be produced this season. Their “ Vieillesse de Don Juan” is to be given at the Francais. Mounet-Sully is to interpret the role of Don Juan at the age of sixty-five. “Le Vieil Homme,” by M. Porto Riche, is to be put on this winter at the Gymnase. “ T/Qisean Bleu,” a play in five acts, by Maeter- linck, is also to be produced at one of the theatres. Among the new plays to be given at the Odéon Theatre are the following: “La Patronne,” by Mr. Bernstein ; ‘‘Ramuntcho,” by Pierre Loti; “T/Homme et la Loi,” by Paul and Victor Margueritte ; ‘La Robe Blanche,” by M. Trarieux ; “Florise Bonheur,’ adapted from M. Adolphe Brisson’s novel by MM. Georges Mitchell and Baschet ; “Le Calvaire,” by M. Octave Mirbeau, adapted by M. Antoine Bibesco. Auys HALLARD. <> +-__———- SPANISH NOTES. HE note of progress in Feminism played in Spain by the New World was seen by the representation of women at the meeting held at the University of Madrid by the Ibero- American Society in honour of the Cervantes Tercentenary, for the seventeen Jitiératewrs who occupied the University chair that afternoon for the delivery of discourses or poems on the Spanish classic, numbered two ladies who are well known by the work of their pen, and the applause which met their respective eloquent speeches showed that Spain has awakened to the fact that it is no longer meet for woman’s talent to be hidden under a bushel. Madame Emilia Pardo Bazin, ¢he pioneer of Spanish authoresses, whose books have been trans- lated into almost every European language, read a clever paper on the value of the philosophy of “ Don Quixote.” And it is noteworthy that such works of this well-known lady as “‘ La cuestion palpi- tante, Polemicas y estudios literarios,” etc., led to Castelar advocating her claim to a chair in the Academy. Readers of her many novels, especially “ Pascual Lopez,” “Una Christiana,” etc., can well understand that the authoress would rather be known as ‘‘la Pardo Bazan” than by the title of Countess, which she can claim ; and the charm of her manner doubtless helped the anthoress through the difficulties which beset her early efforts in the path of literature at a time when it was rarely trodden by a Spanish woman. Sefiora Carmen Burgos de Segui was the other lady speaker at the Don Quixote féte, and it was pleasant to see how this pioneer of Spanish lady journalists confirmed the growing opinion that women can work without loss to their prestige. The lady’s eloquent plea for a modern “ Don Quixote” who would aid women to attain a better education and ensure them more protection in the walks of life was published next day in the Diario Oniversal. When listening to the well-rounded sentences of the discourses delivered with fire and fervour by such orators as Senor Arminian, Senor Perez Triana, etc., and the poems composed and de- claimed by Fernandez Guell, Conde de Reparaz, ete., ete., one felt that the Spanish claim to eloquence is indeed based on fact ; and the military band in the gallery at the end of the well-filled hall afforded pleasant little interregnums during the feast of reason and the flow of souls. Sefior Don Jesus Pando y Valle, the author of “Mision Transendental’ (an account of the history and work of the society of the Red Cross in Spain) is devoting a great deal of time to the promotion of the ladies’ committee which has been formed in conjunction with the society, and it now numbers forty members under the presi- dency of the distinguished Marquise de Ayerbe. This lady has also taken her place as an authoress by the book which she kindly gave me, called “ El Castillo del Marques de Mos en Sotomayor.” The work is an historical ‘account of the castle bearing the name of the well-known Spanish family, and when the writer tells us in the pre- face that the record, which must have required deep research, was only the work of a summer holiday in the province of Galicia, it shows the force of her intelligence. As a leader of Spanish society this lady has great demands upon her time, and it was interesting to hear that it has only recently been understood that literature and philanthropy can add to the pleasures of her life. She has taken the lead of the ladies’ com- mittee of the Ibero-American committee, formed in the hope of aiding to supply the want in Spain 10 of schools for girls of the middle-class, and for the establishment of centres for the study of painting and music. Moreover, a drawing-room meeting was held at the Marquise de Ayerbe on June 10th, to discuss the project for founding a model farm in the vicinity. of Madrid, where ladies can study agriculture. Colonel Figuerola Ferretti, who has always so strongly advocated the education of his countrywomen, took a practical step for the promotion of this idea by studying the system of the Lady Warwick College at Studley Castle, as the patriot’s interesting article on “King Alfonzo XIII. and Spanish Agriculture” con- tributed to the Countess of Warwick’s magazine, Woman’s Agricultural Times, led to the colonel being invited to inspect the Castle College. The Ibero-American ladies’ committee has just been joined by the Marquesa de Comellas, the Duquesa de Sessa, the Marquesa de Bolanos, Senora de Palomo, Marquesa de Valdeterrazo, the Marquesa de Villamagna, the Marquesa de Faura y Saralegui, etc., and as the Queen’s clever sister-in-law, the Infanta Dofia Paz, wishes also to co-operate in the work by associating the society with one of her own feminine industrial schemes in Bavaria, it seems as if woman’s progress in Spain had entered on a fresh era. When Sefior Francisco Silvela, whose death this summer is so deeply deplored in Spain, did me the honour to invite me to his house at the beginning of last May, I was much interested in hearing him say that he, like many Spaniards, favoured the idea of woman’s education, as he con- sidered that culture enabled a wife to be a com- panion to her husband, whilst it in no wise lessened her feminine charms. The quondam Prime Minister was very definite in his objection to women playing cards for money, and he also expressed disapproval of the growing custom of ladies smoking, which he had noted when last in London. I may here say that all the while I was in Spain, I never saw a cigarette in the mouth of a woman, as the habit is reserved for strictly private circles. Sefor Silvela seemed interested in his project of publishing under the title of “The History of Spanish Ethics,” the course of lectures which he delivered last winter in the Atheneum, and when the illustrious man showed me his fine library, and complained that the days were too short to study all he wished, I little thought that the night of the statesman’s work on earth was so near at hand. It was also a great privilege to be introduced during my visit to Madrid this summer to Silvela’s well-known colleague, Moret, at a public meeting. The statesman’s well-cut handsome face must always be striking, but when animated with the interest with which he discourses on such subjects as THE AUTHOR. education, woman’s culture, one cannot wonder at his influence in his country. The statesman’s ‘courtesy was shown to me as the Authors’ Society delegate by promptly sending me an order which gave me the entrée to the Atheneum, of which he is the president. As the Atheneum is the great centre for all literary movements, it has a fine library, and it is there that speeches from the first littérateurs of the day stimulate the leaders of the Press. Spain boasts several very good illustrated papers, and I was interested to find that Angéle Cabrera Latorre, who recently received from the King the decoration of the Order of Alfonso XII. for his work in natural history, has now been appointed editor of the magazine called Alrededor del mundo. RACHEL CHALLICE. ————_-——___ A PUBLISHER’S AGREEMENT, OR THE PLEASURES OF IGNORANCE. — N the early part of 1903 a lady, who is amember of the society, wrote to Messrs. Ward, Lock & Co.’s house in Melbourne offering them a MS. for publication. In September of that year she received a letter from the Australian manager stating that he had heard from the London house, and that they were willing to publish her story if she would assign them the copyright and pay £75 towards the expenses of production and loss that the publication of a first book by an unknown author might incur. She was to receive fifty gratis copies. To this letter she made reply that she was willing to pay £75, but continued: “ You do not mention in your letter that I am to receive any benefit should my book prove a success. You tell me, however, that Ward, Lock & Co. made it a rule to pay back to themselves the first outlay, then to return money paid, after which the profits were shared with the author. If suchis the case, I am quite ready to assign to them the copyright.” The author thereupon paid the £75, the receipt of which was cabled to London, and an agreement was forwarded to her from the Melbourne house, of which the following is a copy :— Memorandum of Agreement entered into this Twenty- sixth day of October, 1903, between EO of the one part, and Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, of Warwick House, Salisbury Square, London, England, of the other part. Whereby it is mutually agreed as follows :— 1. That the said hereby assigns to Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, the copyright and all her interest in the novel entitled “ , and pays the said Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, the sum of Seventy-five Pounds (£75), and in consideration thereof the said Ward, Lock & Co., Limited, agree to produce and publish the novel:in their ordinary style, and give I'wenty-five (25) gratis, copies of the book. 2. It is understood between the parties that accounts of  THE AUTHOR. 11 the book sales are to be made up every twelve months, and whatever profit the sale of the book shows is to be divided pro rata according to the outlay expended by each party, and when both are fully paid, further profits (if any) are to be equally divided between author and publishers. Signed for Waid, Lock & Co., Limited. WILLIAM STEELE. Manager and Attorney. The Melbourne manager stated in his letter : “« You will notice that second clause of agreement is made out so that, should your book have a success- ful sale, you will receive a share of the advantage.” Under the agreement, therefore, if the book had had a large circulation, the author would have got back her outlay and obtained her share of the profits. After the author had signed the agreement on December 4th, 1903, the Melbourne manager wrote as follows :— “TJ have just received a coded cablegram from London, which, translated, indicates that our home house declines to confirm the second clause of agreement recently arranged your story, and I am asked to cable instructions. I added the second clause on my own responsibility in view of your letter of October 15th ; and, seeing that our people cannot accept the same, will you kindly cable me that you are willing to abandon it? I can then cable London accord- ingly. Probably there are some reasons unknown to me which prevent the house agreeing to the second clause.” The author consented, by cable, to the cancella- tion of the second clause, and wrote subsequently confirming her cable. The book was published on May 24th, the manager repeating in a letter to the author: “Our house, as you know, would not extend confirmation to the clause in the agreement which you afterwards agreed to cancel, and uncon- ditional surrender of the copyright had to be effected before they were willing to commence putting the -volume into type and preparing for publication. For the sum you paid towards its production you will have the satisfaction of having your story well put on the market by a leading publishing house ; and if the sale proves successful, you will be in a position to command better terms for a second and subsequent stories.” About the same time the author discovered, to her astonishment, that the story in serial form was running through the Leader, the weekly country edition of the Melbourne Arqus. This is the statement of the case :— After reading the prospectus of the society, the author states: “I seem to have been very stupid in agreeing to the publishers’ terms, but I did not then know that your society would interest itself in an unknown writer, and therefore I thought it impossible that I could by any means obtain justice.’ The writer proceeds to state that the society can use the information for the benefit of authors in any way the committee choose. When the author had placed the matter fully before the secretary, he was so astonished that he wrote to the firm in London putting forward the details of the case, and ending his letter with the following words :— “Tt seems impossible to think that your firm would have ratified such a contract with the Aus- tralian house, and it is because I think there must be some mistake that I am writing to you on the matter. I shall be glad if you will let me know if the book has actually been placed on the London market, and if you could send me information as to the exact position and agreements.” Some time was lost owing to the fact that Messrs. Ward, Lock & Co. desired to communicate with their representative in Australia, but when finally the secretary of the society received the original documents from the author, he wrote again to Ward, Lock suggesting that their representative should call and see the papers in his hands. The interview took place, and Ward, Lock’s representa- tive read through the correspondence and admitted its authenticity. The committee of the society, having considered the case, decided to publish the details with the names of the publishers, and to point out to other members, who may by chance have similar terms offered them, that such terms, from the author’s point of view, are absolutely and wholly unsatisfactory. You pay £75, and hand over your property. In these circumstances it is impos- sible to obtain even the return of the money you have expended, although the book may sell in thousands, and may continue to sell steadily for many years. This is the author’s standpoint ; but there is this further point to be considered, that, although the publishers undertake to produce and publish the book in their ordinary style (see Clause 1), and hand over twenty-five gratis copies, yet there is no guarantee as to the extent to which the book will be advertised and brought to the notice of the public. When a publisher under- takes the whole cost of production of the book it is customary to leave the advertising entirely under his control, for the common-sense deduction is that the publisher will do his best to recover his own capital ; but when the author pays for the cost of production—and £75 will cover the cost of pro- duction of 1,000 copies of most 6s. novels—then it is only fair that the author should have some guarantee that the book will be adequately pushed. It would be interesting to know how many copies of the book were printed, at what cost, and how many copies were sold at the expenditure of what advertisement, and what monies the sale of the serial rights realised. But a knowledge of these details would not in any way alter the utter hopelessness of the agreement from the author’s standpoint. THE AUTHOR. E. Y. LUCAS vy. MONCRIEFF. OWARDS the end of July a case, supported by the Society of Authors on behalf of one of its members, of some interest to holders of copyright property, was heard in the courts before Mr. Justice Warrington. The question raised was whether the copyright in a book called “‘ The Open Road” was vested in Mr. E. V. Lucas, the plaintiff, or the defendant as trustee in the bankruptcy of Mr. Grant Richards, the publisher. There was a further question in- volved, assuming the copyright not to be vested in the defendant, whether he, by contract with the author, was the owner of the publishing right and had the right to continue the publication of the book upon certain terms. An interlocutory injunction was granted in favour of the plaintiff, and the Judge, in summing up, stated as follows : Mr. Justice Warrington —* Now, the question arises really upon two letters written, the one by the plaintiff to Mr. Grant Richards on the 11th November, 1898, and the other by Mr. Grant Richards to the plaintiff en the 14th November, 1898, which constitute the agreement in regard to this particular book. I propose first to consider these letters, and then see how far any light is thrown on the true meaning of them by previous ones. Now, the letter of the 11th November, 1898, so far as it is material, is in these terms: ‘The plan is not yet solid, but I have this in my head at present: a pair of books for the pocket, page 34 by 6, 200 pages in each, on thin paper ; limp cloth or leather, very choice in form. ‘They would be a mixture of serious and gay, and would be composed respectively of prose and verse from all kinds of places, but fresh and straightforward in character. Between them they would provide for most moods that one has on a holiday. The title would be something to this effect.’ Then he gives certain titles and he refers to the price. ‘I should use mainly non-copyright stuff, but copyright difficulties would not I think be insuperable in many cases. Walking tours and cycling tours should be incomplete without the books, which would in the main celebrate the open air and larger life. My work would comprise making the selections and composing a preface touching on holiday-makers’ literary needs which would, I hope, be compact enough to serve also as an advertisement. Now, as to money. I think if I take nothing down I ought to share profits equally with you.’ Then that is replied to by the letter of the 14th November, 1898: ‘ My dear Lucas,—I am the more taken with your idea that T have had time to think it out. Proceed please. Your exact phrase as to remuneration is: “ Now as to money. I think if I take nothing down I ought to share profits equally with you.” This shall be so. Those are the two letters which constitute the contract between the parties. Now, taking those two letters by themselves, it seems to me that there is nothing more than an agreement between the author, who proposes to write but who has not yet written the book, and the publisher whom he invites to publish it, and that they con- stitute an agreement between the intended author and the publisher that if he (the intended author) writes such a book as that which he describes the publisher will publish it, and he will publish it on the terms that the author and the publisher shall share the profits equally between them. Now, if that is so, I think it is well settled that there is nothing in such an agreement to make it neces- sary to infer that the copyright in the work itself passes to the publisher. The ground on which in this case it is said that the copyright passes to the publisher is one of a different nature. It is said that this is a case of employment by Mr. Grant Richards of the plaintiff to write a certain work for him on terms, either expressed or implied, that the copyright shall belong to him. Now, for that purpose, reliance is placed upon letters of the 23rd and 25th February, 1898, and, therefore, I must refer to them. Those two letters are in these terms—the first is addressed by Mr. Lucas to Mr. Grant Richards: ‘I have given the matter thought and I am ready to undertake to deal with all the manuscript you send me during the next year, beginning from the date of the agreement, for £100 paid monthly. But I think it better to keep the Dumpy contract distinct ; and if I should have an idea for a good series, which commended itself to you, I should ask separate payment for drawing up the prospectus and arranging for the books. Otherwise the £100 would include any ideas for single books that might suggest them- selves. And that is answered on the 25th: ‘My dear Lucas—According to your letter of February 23rd and our conversation of to-day, I am writing now to ratify our arrangement by which you undertake to deal with all the manu- scripts I send you during the next year, beginning from the date of this letter, and to generally act, in fact, as my literary adviser (see me when you can, ete., ete., in order that we can talk things over) for a hundred pounds a year paid monthly. As your letter suggests, if you have an idea for a good series which commends itself to me, you are to receive separate payment for drawing up a prospectus and arranging for the books, otherwise the hundred pounds includes any ideas for single books that may suggest themselves.’ Now, it is suggested that by these two letters Mr. Lucas has put his services at the disposal of Mr. Grant  THE AUTHOR. Richards for the £100 a year, and that if he had any idea of any single book he was bound not only to communicate that idea to Mr. Grant Richards and to give him the opportunity of becoming the publisher of that book, but he was bound if he carried his idea into effect and wrote the book to do it on the terms that Mr. Grant Richards should have the copyright. Now it seems to me that that cannot be so. I think the real meaning of the letters is this : He was to be the literary adviser, and I think one may get a good deal from the first sentence in the letter of the 23rd. Mr. Lucas there undertakes to ‘deal with the manuscripts you send me,’ that is to say, he is to be the pub- lisher’s reader to advise the publisher as to whether a book is likely to be a success if published, and further than that he agrees by that letter—accepted by the letter of the 25th—that if he does have an idea which he communicates to Mr. Grant Richards and Mr. Grant Richards publishes the book as the result of it, that he will not be paid anything further, but it seems to me that there is nothing in either of those two letters imposing any obliga- tion upon Mr. Lucas to place in the hands of Mr. Grant Richards the publication of any book the idea of which may occur to him. All that-that last sentence of the letter with regard to the single book seems to me to impose on Mr. Lucas is that he will not require any further payment for any idea which he may communicate. If so, it seems to me that the argument of the defendants on the main part of the case breaks down. In my judgment there was no employment to write this book. “Tn my opinion the true effect of the letters of November, even read in connection with the two letters of February, was an agreement between the author and the publisher that if the author should compose a book he was to request the publisher to publish it, the’ publisher agreeing if he did publish it to publish it on the terms that he and the author should share the profit equally, and I think the true meaning of the agreement is not employment, but an independent agreement between author and publisher. Supposing instead of being an anthology this had been an original book, a book we will say on some historical subject which the author had got in his head, but had not yet written, is there anything in that circumstance which makes it impossible for him to arrange for the publication of that book with the publisher in the ordinary way, without making any express stipulation that if that agreement is carried into effect the copyright shall beiong to him. I see nothing ; it seems to me that when he has written the book he is the author of it, and that he is prima facie entitled to the copyright. “Now then comes a further question. It is said that the publisher is entitled under this agreement 13 to continue to publish the book and that the author is not entitled to publish it. It seems to me that is met by Reade v. Bentley in 4 Kay and John- son, page 656. It is quite true that in this case there is a difference between the agreements—the agreement in Reade v. Bentley was more precise as to the mode in which the profits were to be ascer- tained. In this case the agreement specifies only the sharing of profits, without saying how those profits are to be ascertained, but I do not think that the difference between the two agreements is enough to justify me in distinguishing this case from Reade v. Bentley. It seems to me in this case, as in Reade v. Bentley, there was a joint adventure for the publication of this book—an adventure which, subject to the limitations that the author must not act unfairly to the publisher —by ‘unfairly’ I mean unfairly as defined by the judgment in Reade v. Bentley—subject to that he may determine the agreement between them. Now the Vice-Chancellor expressed in his judgment what he thought would be a fair determination of the agreement, that is to say, that it would not be fair for the author to determine the agreement if there was an edition running on which the pub- lisher had incurred expense. Subject to that, the author was entitled to determine the agreement and to publish the book elsewhere, if, as I hold in the present case, he has the copyright. Now, in the present case, what has happened is that the publisher became bankrupt on the 2nd February, 1905. Thereupon the benefit of this contract with other assets of the bankrupt would pass of course to the trustee in the bankruptcy. It seems to me that this fact without any notice from the author would at once determine the joint adventure, and subject to the restriction which I have already alluded to would leave it open to the author to employ some other person to publish the book. Then, it is contended that at all events he cannot do so so long as any parts of the last edition remain unsold. That really is giving effect to the restriction which I have already mentioned as having been placed upon the author by the judg- ment in Reade v. Bentley, but that is met by an offer on the part of the plaintiff to buy from the publisher such of the copies of the last edition as remain unsold, ‘Then it is said that there are certain copyright pieces in the book, the copy- right in which belongs to Mr. Grant Richards. Of course, if there is copyright outstanding in certain individual pieces which would be infringed by the republication of the book, the author would not be entitled to infringe that copyright. He states that he does not intend to, and I think the true result in reference to that is that I must leave out of account for the present purpose—for the purpose of this judgment—all question of copy- 14 right in the individual pieces, either between the author, the plaintiff, Mr. Grant Richards or his assignee in bankruptcy, or as between the plaintiff and other persons who have a copyright.” _ OH? OUGHT STAGE-PLAYS AT MUSIC HALLS TO BE PROHIBITED ? —_ <2 — HE question of stage-plays at music halls was a matter of public inquiry some forty years ago, but it has come into prominence again during the last twelve months, and the theatre proprietors are still on the war-path. The cam- paign began in the autumn of 1903, when the Theatrical Managers’ Association instituted pro- ceedings against the Palace Theatre of Varieties for producing a piece entitled “ La Toledad ”—an artistic sketch of a perfectly harmless character, which had been performed in the principal halls in London and in the provinces for two years previously without any complaint whatever. Of course it came within the legal definition of a stage-play, and under the Theatres Act of 1843 it is, strictly speaking, illegal to produce a stage- play at a music hall. The Palace company was accordingly convicted and fined £50. The theatre proprietors, apparently encouraged by their success, then proceeded to attack other music halls in different parts of the metropolis, and, although some of the magistrates were reluc- tant to impose a penalty at all, at the latter end of last year the Oxford and the Metropolitan Music Halls were fined £120 and £180 respectively for the same offence. Now when music hall proprietors are being mulcted in fines exceeding £100 for permitting the performance of stage-plays—which are not only admittedly free from indecency and anything offensive, but are in many instances artistic and picturesque, and add considerably to the entertain- ment of the public—the “man in the street” is naturally inquiring if this is the law, and for whose benefit such a law exists ? Inasmuch as the recent prosecutions have been taken under the Theatres Act, 1843, and this is the statute which is violated every day in London and in the provinces—and has been violated per- sistently during the last half-century at least—it is important to realise that the Act was passed for a specific object, which is not generally under- stood, and under circumstances wholly different from those which exist at the present day. From the conduct of the theatre proprietors with regard to stage-plays, it would appear as if they thought the Theatres Act was intended to preserve THE AUTHOR. the privileges of those who run theatres from the increasing competition of the music halls. The seem to think that the Act was passed for the benefit of themselves as upholders of the “ legiti- mate drama,” by way of contrast to those who run variety entertainments where smoking and drinking is allowed in the auditorium. They argue that as they have certain requirements imposed upon them by reason of their theatre licence, they ought to have the monopoly of performing stage-plays and should prevent artistic performances elsewhere in those palaces of varieties where the restrictions may be less exacting.* But this is an entire mistake. The Theatres Act was never intended for such a purpose at all. Its object was to provide a more effective control over performances calculated to offend public decency and morals. It was described in Parlia- ment as “a measure of police.” It gave no authority to the Lord Chamberlain to dictate to the manager of a theatre what sort of entertain- ments he should provide for the public. It was no part of his duty to say whether there should be drama, or singing, or dancing at the theatre, whether the plays should last forty minutes or three hours, whether there should be two or a dozen performers, or what sort of scenic effects should be employed. All such matters were left to the discretion of the manager, and the only duty of the Lord Chamberlain was to see that no enter- tainments offensive to public decency and morals should be permitted. The Act empowered him to secure to the public that there should be nothing indecent, scurrilous, or profane. The whole pur- pose of the Act was to restrain licentiousness-—not the liberty of the stage. So much for the object of the Act. Now, as to the circumstances to which it was to be applied. The modern music hall or palace of varieties at that time was not in existence and possibly not even conceived. The earliest London music hall was built in 1851, nearly ten years after the Theatres Act was passed. The Canterbury, the Oxford, the Tivoli, and other similar halls of entertainment show the progress of artistic development from the ‘free and easies” at the beginning of the century. Such entertainments took place generally in the yard or precincts of a tavern, where drinks were supplied according to the payments of admission. Each man sang his song, and pipes and porter and good square meals were accessories to the enter- tainment. A licence from the magistrates for music and dancing was required by the same statute under which the County Council grant licences to music halls at the present day. With- * Vide manifesto of the Theatrical Managers’ Associa~ tion, published in the Zimes, July 16th, 1904,  Ss era en Na THER AUTHOR. 15 out the magistrates’ licence such a place of enter- tainment was declared by the Act to be a “dis- orderly house,” and in those early days the description was not always inappropriate to such places even when conducted under the authority of the magistrates. Canterbury Hall was opened in 1852 under the management of the late Mr. Morton, who had run the Canterbury ‘Tavern with “ free and easies.” He it was who introduced the system of “ turns” which prevails in the modern music halls. Similar places were built, and by degrees new palaces of varieties were opened in all parts of the Metropolis. Then it was that the theatre proprietors felt the strain of competition, and—showing how history repeats itself—they commenced a general attack upon the music halls. A series of prosecutions, very similar to those of 1904, were instituted in 1860 by theatre proprietors to check the performance of stage-plays at music halls. There was a performance at Canterbury Hall where two persons came on the stage and repre- gented a kind of pantomime. They played seven- teen or eighteen characters, the great point being the quick change of dress. They were prosecuted for performing a stage-play, and were fined £5. This is merely a single instance, but the theatre proprietors attacked everything, and even secured a conviction against a proprietor of the entertain- ment known as “ Pepper’s Ghost.” The question as to the propriety of these prose- cutions became a matter of public interest, and in 1866 a parliamentary committee was appointed to investigate the case for and against the perfor- mance of stage-plays at music halls. The evidence before the committee is interesting, because it shows the marked contrast between the state of the music halls then and their improved condition at the present day. For instance, it was proved to be the practice at many of the music halls to give a ticket on payment of admission, which entitled the holder to spirits to the amount of the ticket. It was urged against the music halls as a notorious fact that there were private saloons where immorality prevailed. The songs were said to be a disgrace to any person who put them on the stage, and it was alleged that obscene songs suited a certain class of people who went there expressly to get drunk. There were constant rows and fights, and there was a want of police surveil- lance, All these things were urged against. music halls in 1866—when such irregularities did exist no doubt—and yet the parliamentary committee was satisfied that even then there was no case for prohibiting the performance of stage-plays at music halls, provided they were placed under proper supervision. Such was the state of things complained of in 1866, but can it be alleged against the music halls of the present day ? It must be generally admitted that the music halls have been steadily improving in the artistic nature of their performances. The buildings are magnificent and elaborately decorated. They are under the efficient supervision of the County Council. They provide entertainment for thousands of people, of whom it cannot be said nowadays that they go there “expressly to get drunk.” Any disorder or disturbance is immediately suppressed, and the irregularities which no doubt existed some fifty years ago are no longer characteristic of the music halls of to-day. And if the public like to be entertained by stage-plays which are artistic, dramatic, or picturesque, is it reasonable that this old Act of Parliament should prevent them from enjoying the kind of entertain- ment they want ? Prosecutions for performing stage-plays have hindered the progress of the music halls in their artistic development ever since they rose from the “free and easies” of the public-house. Such prosecutions were proved to be unreasonable by the report of the parliamentary committee in 1866. And now at the present time the theatre proprietors have started the old campaign again and have succeeded in depriving the public of performances and entertainments which they like, and which are often more artistic than many a piece produced under the authority of the Lord Chamberlain. It has been laid down that the two tests of a stage-play are, first, the excitement of emotion, and, secondly, the representation of action, A stage-play, moreover, is defined by the Theatres Act to include “every tragedy, comedy, farce, opera, burletta, interlude, melodrama, pantomime, or other entertainment of the stage, or any part thereof.” It is obvious, therefore, that any per- formance in the nature ofa so-called “sketch” at a London music hall is prohibited by statute, and the number of characters or time limit have no recognition in law. It is no exaggeration to say that there is hardly a music hall in London which does not nightly violate the law by the unauthorised performance of a “stage-play.” Not only is the music hall pro- prietor liable to heavy fines, but every artiste may be fined £10 for every such performance in which he takes part; and it is important to note that theatre proprietors have not the exclusive right of instituting proceedings, but any person—even “a man of straw”—can prosecute if he pleases, and the Act of Parliament allows him his costs, to be paid out of the amount of the fines imposed. Such being the state of the law, can it be said to be satisfactory, or applicable to the 16 circumstances of the present day? Is there any sound reason why the public who go to music halls should not be entertained by any performance they like, provided it does not offend against morals or decency ? It is not suggested by the theatre proprietors, who prosecute, that the stage-plays they complain of are immoral or indecent. On the contrary, their grievance is that the so-called ‘“ sketches ” have become so elaborate and artistic that they seek to prohibit performances which may success- fully compete with their own productions at the the theatres. A very pretty little Japanese piece, entitled “O Mat San,” which was artistically staged and admirably acted at the Tivoli, was withdrawn from the music halls from fear of prosecution ; and another artistic piece called THE AUTHOR. music hall, it is necessary to point out that such an opinion is entirely incorrect. An author’s rights in a play consist of “ copyright,” or the right of producing copies by printing or otherwise, and “performing rights,” or the right of produc- tion on a public stage. In the course of the case when the Palace Theatre was prosecuted for per- forming the stage-play, “La Toledad,” it was actually stated in court that the defendants had purchased the performing rights. The fact is, the theatre proprietors find a difficulty in justifying these prosecutions at all. They are not for the public benefit in any way. They are a hindrance to authors, artists, actors, and managers. They inflict great hardship upon persons who deserve encouragement for their efforts to improve the entertainments of the people. And PROSECUTIONS OF STacE PuAys, 1903—4. Music Hall. Play. Date. | Police Court. | Magistrate. Result. Remarks. 1903 Novy. .| Palace Theatre... .| La Toledad”’ | 1904 | Jan, .. New Cross Empire 8. London Palace . 5. London Palace ..|“ My Life for Hers” . | Tivoli oes ...| “ Moonspell” March| Hammersmith Palace...|‘‘ Fighting Parson”... -| * Dandy Doctor” Feb. April .| Empress Theatre, Brix-| “ Fighting Parson” ...| Lambeth Oct. .) Oxford ... .| Belle of the Orient” Metropolitan | | ton. | | Nov. Dec. .| S. London Palace | S. London Palace | “The Moon Spell” has succumbed under the stress of police-court proceedings. One argument advanced against permitting stage-plays at music halls appears to be based upon a misconception of the law relating to copyright. At a recent meeting of the Actors’ Benevolent Society, Mr. Beerbohm Tree, in dealing with this question, said as follows: “At the present time almost all the variety theatres—especially in the suburbs and the pro- vinces—are performing complete stage-plays, many of them occupying as much as an hour, some an hour and a half. Many of these are simply boiled down versions of stage-plays. These are not only played without a dramatic licence, but without any Sees being paid to the author.” If it was intended to suggest that an author has not identically the same rights in respect of a stage-play, whether performed at a theatre or a .| Marlborough St. .| Mr. Denman ...| Greenwich ..| “Major McPhee, M.P.”| Southwark Southwark .| Bow Street x West London ... e Marlborough St. .| Mr. Kennedy .| “Fighting Parson ”’...| Marylebone - Hammersmith Palace...| “ Fighting Parson”’...) West London ... .| * Beneath Big Ben”...| Southwark -| Don Cesar de Bayan”) Southwark .| Fine £50 .| Played two years previously in London = and Provinces. ..| Mr. Kettle £20. .|Mr. Chapman ...) ,, £25. ...| Mr. Paul Taylor. #1 -| Mr. Marsham ... £50. Mr. Rose se £25. .| Mr. Hopkins ... £2 £120 £180) On appeal re- duced to £90, ..| Mr.Curtis Bennett Mr. Rose : £42. .| Mr. Chapman ... £3 -| Mr. Chapman ... £e it seems like an abuse of the police court when people are prosecuted, not for the public benefit, but to procure convictions against rivals in business, whose only offence is shown in their laudable ambi- tion to go on improving their performances by making them more. artistic, dramatic, or picturesque. An antiquated law which is unreasonable is. naturally set at defiance, and some magistrates have shown their reluctance to impose more than a nominal penalty. They are, unfortunately, bound to convict, because—as Mr. Denman, the magis- trate, said in the “La Toledad ” case—“ a stage- play cannot cease to be a stage-play because, instead of three hours, it takes only thirty or forty minutes.” But the summary of prosecutions in the table above (which is not exhaustive) is sufficient. to show the difficulty of administering a law which is not adapted to the requirements of the publicat the present day.  ee Ee et ere AI A la ge foo ON. THE AUTHOR. 17 In giving his decision in the case of the “ Fight- ing Parson,” Mr. Hopkins makes this clear when he said, “‘ Speaking for myself, and I hope, for all the magistrates and justices throughout the country, I take but little notice of a form of offence which the authorities of the country do not proceed against, and which no one proceeds against, except the people whose pockets are touched.” Again, in the case against the New South London Music Hall for producing “ My Life for Hers,” Mr. Paul Taylor observed, “It is important to remember that for the last twenty-five or thirty years music hall managers have been allowed to produce sketches without hindrance. The evidence given before the committee in 1892 included a statement by the late Mr. Clement Scott that since theatre managers had withheld their hands and winked at the illegality, the whole tone of the variety theatre had improved, as any one who has any London experience will agree. The music hall managers have been lulled into a state of security; false security perhaps, by the inaction of any public authority.” He was reluctantly compelled to convict, however, and imposed a nominal fine of £1. The theatre proprietors have so far had it all their own way. They have selected whom they will prosecute and whom they do not care to molest. They have succeeded in shelving the question as to the stage-plays at the Empire and the Alhambra, because their own interests might be affected in the event of convictions at those two particular halls. Moreover, they have lately had the satisfaction of seeing some of the magistrates so deeply impressed with the enormity of this ‘ offence, that they have inflicted very heavy fines for what other magistrates can hardly regard as an offence at all. But the theatre proprietors may have carried their successes too far. In the matter of their entertainments the public should surely have a voice. And when the time has come to make an alteration in the law, when the object of the Theatres Act is carefully considered and under- stood, it is possible that the question will not be whether ‘sketches ” shall be permitted at music halls, within certain limits as to time and the number of performers, but whether it is to the interest of the public that any stage-play, which is not indecent, scurrilous, or profane, shall be prohibited at any one of their places of public entertainment. The music halls, compared with the theatres, are only in their infancy. Their artistic development during the last ten or fifteen years has been rapid and extraordinary. They have a great future before them. And it has become a question for the public, not for theatre proprietors to decide, whether the entertainments of the people shall be fettered with restrictions, which are proved to be unreasonable, and which are wholly inappropriate ° the requirements of the public at the present day. Harotp Harpy. +——_-—_ ses MAGAZINE CONTENTS. —_t-—~——+ —__ BLACKWOOD’S MAGAZINE. An Irish Festival. By Stephen Gwynn. BOOKMAN. The Work of Maurice Hewlett. By A. Macdonell. Book MonTvHLY. Stage and Book. By Lewis Melville. Holy Ground: A Pilgrimage to the Scene of Grey’s “Hlegy.” By W. J. Roberts. The German Book Trade. By Bruno Conrad, CHAMBERS’ JOURNAL, Shakespeare Autographs. By W. Roberts. CONTEMPORARY REVIEW. Centres of Scientific and Religious Thought. By Emma Marie Caillard. CORNHILL MAGAZINE. By J. H. Yoxall. By Frank Sidgwick. Consule Planco. An English Poet. FORTNIGHTLY REVIEW. Mr. Wells as a Sociologist. By Dr. Beattie Crozier. Church and State in France. By Eugene Tavernier. Translated by Helen Chisholm. The Beginnings of Religion and Totemism. By J. G. Fraser. Christopher Marlowe. By W. L. Courtney. The Letters of Ernest Renan. By Edward Wright. LONGMAN’S MAGAZINE. The Sherborne Pageant. By Sir Lewis Morris. MACMILLAN’S MAGAZINE, The Novels of Captain Chamier. The Fellow Workers of Voltaire: Beaumarchais. By . G. Tallentyre. TR MonrH. King Henry VIII. asa Poet. By Rhys Pryce. MONTHLY REVIEW. Alphonse Daudet. By M. F. Sanders. The Increasing Popularity of the Hrotic Novel. By Basil Tozer. On Catalogue Reading. By Dora Greenwell McChesney. Dean Church, By Algernon Cecil. NATIONAL REVIEW. Sea Power and The Poets. By St. Loe Strachey. NINETEENTH CENTURY. A Plea for a Ministry of Fine Arts. By M.H. Spielmann.. Agnes Sorel. By Alice Kemp-Welch. TEMPLE BAR. The Poet's Ringlets, By Michael MacDonagh, 18 WARNINGS TO THE PRODUCERS OF BOOKS. —_—>—+ — BRE are a few standing rules to be observed in an agreement. There are four methods of dealing with literary property :— I. Selling it Outright. This is sometimes satisfactory, if a proper price can be obtained. But the transaction should be managed by a competent agent, or with the advice of the Secretary of the Society. Il. A Profit-Sharing Agreement (a bad form of agreement). In this case the following rules should be attended to: (1.) Not to sign any agreement in which the cost of pro- .duection forms a part without the strictest investigation. (2.) Not to give the publisher the power of putting the profits into his own pocket by charging for advertisements in his own organs, or by charging exchange advertise- ments. ‘Therefore keep control of the advertisements. (3.) Not to allow a special charge for “ office expenses,” unless the same allowance is made to the author. (4.) Not to give up American, Colonial, or Continental rights. (5.) Not to give up serial or translation rights. (6.) Not to bind yourself for future work to any publisher. As well bind yourself for the future to any one solicitor or -doctor ! III. The Royalty System. This is perhaps, with certain limitations, the best form -of agreement. It is above all things necessary to know what the proposed royalty means to both sides. It isnow possible for an author to ascertain approximately the truth. From time to time very important figures connected with royalties are published in Zhe Author. IV. A Commission Agreement. The main points are :— (1.) Be careful to obtain a fair cost of production. (2.) Keep control of the advertisements. (3.) Keep control of the sale price of the book. General. All other forms of agreement are combinations of the four above mentioned. Such combinations are generally disastrous to the author. Never sign any agreement without competent advice from the Secretary of the Society. Stamp all agreements with the Inland Revenue stamp. Avoid agreements by letter if possible. The main points which the Society has always demanded from the outset are :-— (1.) That both sides shall know what an agreement means. (2.) The inspection of those account books which belong tothe author. We are advised that this is a right, in the nature of a common law right, which cannot be denied or withheld. (3.) Always avoid a transfer of copyright. \$—<—2 WARNINGS TO DRAMATIC AUTHORS. ETO EVER sign an agreement without submitting it to the Secretary of the Society of Authors or some com- petent legal authority. 2. {t is well to be extremely careful in negotiating for the production of a play with anyone except an established manager. THE AUTHOR. 3. There are three forms of dramatic contract for plays in three or more acts :— (a.) Sale outright of the performing right. This is unsatisfactory. An author who enters into such a contract should stipulate in the contract for production of the piece by a certain date and for proper publication of his name on the play-bills. : (b.) Sale of performing right or of a licence to perform on the basis of percentages on gross receipts. Percentages vary between 5 and 15 per cent. An author should obtain a percentage on the sliding scale of g7vss receipts in preference to the American system, Should obtain a sum inadvance of percentages. A fixe: date on or before which the play should be performed. (e.) Sale of performing right or of a licence to perform on the basis of royalties (i.¢., fixed nightly fees). ‘his method should be always avoided except in cases where the fees are likely to be small or difficult to collect. The other safeguards set out under heading (0.) apply also in this case. 4, Plays in one act are often sold outright, but it is better to obtain a small nightly fee if possible, and a sum paid in advance of such fees in any event. It is extremely important that the amateur rights of one-act plays should be reserved. 5. Authors should remember that performing rights can be limited, and are usually limited, by town, country, and time. This is most important. 6. Authors should not assign performing rights, but should grant a licence to perform. ‘he legal distinction is of great importance, 7. Authors should remember that performing rights in a play are distinct from literary copyright. A manager holding the performing right or licence to perform cannot print the book of the words. 8. Never forget that United States rights may be exceed- ingly valuable. ‘They should never be included in English agreements without the author obtaining a substantial consideration. 9. Agreements for collaboration should be carefully drawn and executed before collaboration is commenced. 10. An author should remember that production of a play is highly speculative : that he runs a very great risk of delay and a breakdown in the fulfilment of his contract. He should therefore guard himself all the more carefully in the beginning. 11. An author must remember that the dramatic market is exceedingly limited, and that for a novice the first object is to obtain adequate publication. As these warnings must necessarily be incomplete, on account of the wide range of the subject of dramatic con- tracts, those authors desirous of further information are referred to the Secretary of the Society. ep ° WARNINGS TO MUSICAL COMPOSERS. a ITTLE can be added to the warnings given for the assistance of producers of books and dramatic authors. It must, however, be pointed out that, as a rule, the musical publisher demands from the musical composer a transfer of fuller rights and less liberal finan- cial terms than those obtained for literary and dramatic property. The musical composer has very often the two rights to deal with—performing right and copyright. He  Ae ie ae ve os THE AUTHOR. should be especially careful therefore when entering into an agreement,and should take into particular consideration the warnings stated above. Se ee ee HOW TO USE THE SOCIETY. ——— + 1, VERY member has a right toask for and to receive advice upon his agreements, his choice of a pub- lisher, or any dispute arising in the conduct of his business or the administration of his property. The Secretary of the Society is a solicitor, but if there is any special reason the Secretary will refer the case to the Solicitors of the Society. Further, the Committee, if they deem it desirable, will obtain counsel's opinion. All this without any cost to the member. 2. Remember that questions connected with copyright and publishers’ agreements do not fall within the experi- ence of ordinary solicitors. Therefore, do not scruple to use the Society. 3. Send to the Office copies of past agreements and past accounts, with a copy of the book represented. The Secretary will always be glad to have any agreements, new or old, for inspection and note. ‘The information thus obtained may prove invaluable. 4. Before signing any agreement whatever, send the document to the Society for examination. 5. Remember always that in belonging to the Society you are fighting the battles of other writers, even if you are reaping no benefit to yourself, and that you are advancing the best interests of your calling in promoting the independence of the writer, the dramatist, the composer. 6. The Committee have now arranged for the reception of members’ agreements and their preservation in a fire- proof safe. The agreements will, of course, be regarded as confidential documents to be read only by the Secretary, who will keep the key of the safe. The Society now offers: —(1) To read and advise upon agreements and to give advice concerning publishers. (2) ‘Io stamp agreements in readiness for a possible action upon them. (3) To keep agreements. (4) To enforce payments due according to agreements. Fuller particulars of the Society’s work can be obtained in the Prospectus. 7. No contract should be entered into with a literary agent without the advice of the Secretary of the Society. Members are strongly advised not to accept without careful consideration the contracts with publishers submitted to them by literary agents, and are recommended to submit them for interpretation and explanation to the Secretary of the Society. 8. Many agents neglect to stamp agreements. must be done within fourteen days of first execution. Secretary will undertake it on behalf of members. This The 9. Some agents endeavour to prevent authors from referring matters to the Secretary of the Society ; so do some publishers. Members can make their own deductions and act accordingly. 10. The subscription to the Society is £1 4s. per annum, or £10 10s for life membership. 19 TO MUSICAL COMPOSERS. ——>+— HE Society undertakes to stamp copies of music on behalf ot its members for the fee of 6d. per 100 or part of 100. The members’ stamps are kept in the Society’s safe. The musical publishers communicate direct with the Secretary, and the voucher is then forwarded to the members, who are thus saved much unnecessary trouble. OE eS THE READING BRANCH. oe EMBERS will greatly assist the Society in this branch of its work by informing young writers of its existence. Their MSS. can be read and treated as a composition is treated by a coach, The term MSS. includes not only works of fiction, but poetry and dramatic works, and when it is possible, under special arrangement, technical and scientific works. The Readers are writers of competence and experience. The fee is one guinea, —p—+ NOTICES. —_——>—+—__ HE Editor of Zhe Author begs to remind members of the Society that, although the paper is sent to them free of charge, the cost of producing it would be a very heavy charge on the resources of the Society if a great many members did not forward to the Secretary the modest 5s. 6d. subscription for the year. Communications for “The Author” should be addressed to the Olfices of the Society, 39, Old Queen Street, Storey’s Gate, S.W., and should reach the Editor not later than the 21st of each month. All persons engaged in literary work of any kind, whether members of the Society or not, are invited to communicate to the Editor any points connected with their work which it would be advisable in the general interest to publish. Communications and letters are invited by the Editor on all subjects connected with literature, but on no other subjects whatever. very effort will be made to return articles which cannot be accepted. —_—— + The Secretary of the Society begs to give notice that all remittances are acknowledged by return of post, and he requests members who do not receive an answer to important communications within two days to write to him without delay. All remittances should be crossed Union Bank of London, Chancery Lane, or be sent by registered letter only. —<>—__-—___—— LEGAL AND GENERAL LIFE ASSURANCE SOCIETY. > + ENSIONS to commence at any selected age, P either with or without Life Assurance, can be obtained from this society. Full particulars can be obtained from the City Branch Manager, Legal and General Life Assurance Society, 158, Leadenhall Street, London, H.C. THE AUTHOR. AUTHORITIES. hen aan «Prom a circular dated “Leipzig, middle of July, 1905,” signed by an International Committee appointed to make arrangement for the Inter- national Congress of Publishers at Milan next year, we learn that membership of the Congress is confined to book publishers, music publishers, art publishers, and publishers of periodicals (reviews, magazines, illustrated papers) of all countries. Discussions can be in Italian, French, German, and English. Interpreters for these languages will be present at all the sittings. The Congress sittings will take place in Milan, from June 6th to 10th, 1906. The subjects dealt with will relate exclusively to such questions as have international interest, and refer either to authors’ rights or publishers’ rights in works of literature and art, or relate to book, art, music, or periodical publication. The Congress is divided in two sections— Section A.: Authors’ Rights and Publishers’ Rights. Section B.: Trade. The discussions will be arranged in three sub-sections of the Sections A. and B., formed as follows : 1. Books and periodicals. 2. Music. 3. Objects of the trade in works of art (engravings, prints, photographs). The discussion on Section A., “ Authors’ Rights and Publishers’ Rights” will, no doubt, be interesting to all members of the Society, and we hope to be able to obtain a full and detailed account when the Congress has been held next year. Book, Art, Music, and Periodical Mr. Grant Richards, THE application of publisher, for an order of discharge in bankruptcy came before Mr. Registrar Brougham in July, and was disposed of by an order suspending the dis- charge for two years. The estimated liabilities, according to the Official Receiver’s report, were £36,495, but it was stated that these might be increased to as much as £48,995, in certain contingencies. Of the assets £10,300 had been realised, and the value of the unrealised assets was estimated at £10,075. The Official Receiver’s report regarding the bankrupt’s conduct of his business and his manner of living was very unfavourable. In explanation of the private expenditure, it was stated that Mr. Grant Richards had spent considerable sums in entertaining authors, booksellers and other persons who might have assisted him in business. The Registrar, in giving judgment, remarked that this was an unfortunate case, as the bankrupt had a large business, which, so late as November, 1904, was valued at £50,000.' a OBITUARY. —— + —_ R. GEORGE MACDONALD, whose death we chronicle with regret, was one of the early members of the society, but resigned his membership in 1894. His sympathies were always strong for the members of his profession and the work of the society. Born in the Aberdeenshire village of Huntley, in 1824, he was destined for the ministry, but, partly owing to his ill health, he took up literature as a profession. He thus appealed to a wider audience as a writer than he could possibly have done as a minister, though even to the end of his life he devoted a portion of his time to preaching and lecturing. He was, according to his own state- ment, firstly a poet, and secondly a writer of novels; and though as a writer of novels he attained literary fame, yet there are many who will not forget his work as a poet. Of the novels produced from his pen, “David Elginbrod” obtained the widest circulation, and the epitaph in this book is, perhaps, the most widely quoted of any of his writings, but the author’s own favourite was “ Robert Falconer.” For many years he lived abroad for the sake of his health ; but he returned to England, and died at Ashtead, Surrey, in the middle of last month. It is interesting to note that his two sons, inspired, no doubt, by their father’s example, have also produced books. His second son, Ronald, achieved a recent success in a work entitled “ The Sword of the King.” + <_< THE CRABBE CELEBRATION AT ALDEBURGH. 16TH—18TH SEPTEMBER, 1905. —+~<>— HE Crabbe Celebration, in commemoration of the poet’s birth one hundred and fifty years ago, has been an unqualified success. Under the direction of Mr. Charles Ganz, to whose enthusiasm the inception and fulfilment of the function are due, the borough authorities, from the Mayor downwards, made everything easy and attractive to the numerous visitors, the most notable among whom was Mr., or—to recognise  See THE AUTHOR. 21 his recent academic honours—Dr. Thomas Hardy. To the author of the Wessex novels Crabbe is “ the first realist,” making appeal, as truthful portrayer of the sad, sombre life of the peasantry, in contrast to the sham presentments of beribboned swains and bedizened shepherdesses of Watteau pictures and pastoral poems. Quite unexpected was the helpful prominence given to the celebration by leading articles and “ appreciations’? in the leading London and pro- vincial papers, many of whom sent representatives to report the proceedings, while a goodly show of patrons, from the Prime Minister to local magnates, sent their blessings, and, in some cases, their guineas, these last-named, sadly needed. More welcome than even the guineas were the exhibits in the venerable Moot Hall—a goodly muster of per- sonal relics of the poet ; manuscripts of some unpub- lished poems, manuscripts of sermons never to be published, having, once and for all, done their duty from the ‘“‘ three-decker”’ ; copies of first editions ; portraits of Crabbe by Pickersgill and Millington ; pictures of Aldeburgh and Slaughden (where Crabbe helped his father in the duties of salt-master) in the eighteenth century ; and a life and selection from the poems in Russian, the existence of which Monsr. Huchon told me had escaped even his eagle eye. To that eminent scholar and ardent lover of the poet, all are under debt of deep grati- tude, not only for his presence, but for the brilliant paper on “Crabbe’s Aldeburgh,” which, written in pure and nervous English, and suffused with a charm of style which is the secret of his country- men, was read by him at the afternoon gathering on Saturday. Mr. Redstone had previously dealt with some features of the old town in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and these M. Huchon supplemented in an illuminative discourse showing profound acquaintance with the social and literary history of England in the eighteenth century, and giving a graphic description of the ill-built, wind- swept borough at the time when Crabbe found therein material for verse which won the praise, to name no others, of Scott, Jane Austen, Cardinal Newman, and Tennyson. An interesting paper on Crabbe as a botanist, enlivened by quotations from poems in which the flora of East Anglia is intro- duced, preceded a very able assessment of “Crabbe’s place in English literature” by Mr. Clement Shorter. Dwelling on his originality and pathos, and on his skill as a story-teller, Mr. Shorter applied his wide range of knowledge of our literature to a comparison of Crabbe with his contemporaries, and to the contrasts between his own verse and the poetry which both preceded and followed it. The necessarily meagre reports of each paper which have appeared emphasise the wish of those who heard them to see them published in full. In the evening, lighter entertainment was pro- vided in the shape of tableaux vivants illustrative of certain incidents in Orabbe’s life. The severest critics pronounced these to be excellent, and paid hearty tribute to the skill of Mr. André in device and presentment. On the Sunday morning, in the fine old church where Crabbe officiated as curate in 1792, the Rev. S. W. Goldsmith discoursed in large-hearted and excellent fashion on the poet as reflecting faithfully the human nature and con- ditions of bis age ; holding him up as an example to be followed in rectitude, strenuousness, and broad sympathies. Thereafter came facilities, on the whole well availed of, for excursions to places associated with the poet-—Orford, with its Norman keep; Parham, with its picturesque mvated Tudor hall; and Framlingham, with its magnificent castle and its church, wherein are stately tombs of Surrey, the Poet-peer, and other of the Howards. From all this, there may be no result of “ boom ” in Crabbe; but the gathering together from far and near, of those who hold that his place in English literature is, if subordinate, at least secure, may cause some to whom he is only a name, to read the ‘Tales in Verse,” “The Borough,” and “The Village.” EpWwaRpD CLODD. —_—_—___ 7-4 THE LITERATURE OF SOUTH AFRICA. ——+ <4 —_ F South Africa had been compelled to rely for its literary output upon the efforts of those born and bred within its own borders, it would have little indeed to show. Within the last hundred and fifty years a vast number of books have been produced, dealing with the lands and peoples south of the Zambesi, but few of them have been the work of colonial-born writers. The reasons for this paucity of production are not difficult to find. The Cape Dutch have been, in the main, pastoralists, farmers and wine-growers, and have been far too much engaged in the rough work of opening up the country, conquering native tribes, hunting, and wresting their living from the soil, to devote any portion of their time to such an occupation as literature, which needs a settled government, education, and an ampler leisure than the South African-born has had to bestow. It is not unlikely that the next fifty years may see many changes in these respects ; education is steadily advanciny, peace and leisure will be more abundant, and from the ranks of the two sturdy races before whom the future of Africa south of the Zambesi lies, it is almost certain that writers will presently arise to create a literature of its own for this great and interesting country,  22 The earliest writers upon South Africa were, without exception, travellers, missionaries, sports- men and naturalists, who, struck with the natural wonders of this portion of the Dark Continent, were anxious to give to the world their impres- sions. Among these two distinguished Swedes, Sparrmann and Thunberg, whose works were trans- lated into English, published in the last quarter of the eighteenth century two excellent works of travel concerning the old Cape Colony, its fauna, flora, and inhabitants. To them succeeded the lively French naturalist, Le Vaillant, whose three works followed within a few years the publication of the narratives of the Swedish travellers. Le Vaillant had a vivid imagination, and his facts are not always to be relied upon ; still, even at the present day, his books are not without interest, and the vatiety and vivacity of the mercurial Frenchman can seldom fail to amuse the reader. Barrow, secretary to Earl Macartney, the second English Governor of Cape Colony, published in the early years of the nineteenth century a first-rate book of travel dealing with the new British dependency. This writer, afterwards famous as Sir John Barrow, secretary to the Admiralty, was a man of high attainments, and his book is not only a sound piece of literature, but abounds in solid information and well-balanced reasoning. To Barrow succeeded Lichtenstein, a German medical man, who produced, a few years later, a first-rate book of travel. Some fifteen years after Barrow’s travels appeared another notable volume, the narrative of Dr. Burchell, one of the most painstaking and scientific travellers who have ever explored Africa. Burchell was one of the first to penetrate beyond the Orange River, and his great work on the country, and its fauna and flora remains to this day a most valuable book of reference. There have been few poets worth the name in South Africa, even as temporary sojourners. Thomas Pringle is one of them. One of the Algoa Bay settlers, he lived in the Eastern Province of Cape Colony for some five years—from 1820 to 1825—during which time he became thoroughly imbued with the wild romance of the country. Pringle knew Sir Walter Scott, and some of his poetry is obviously tinged with the influences of his great {ellow-countryman. His “Afar in the Desert,” “The Captive of Camalu,” ‘“ Evening Rambles,” “The Song of the Wild Bushman,” and other pieces stand far above the attempts of any other writers of South African poetry. Up to the present time, in truth, Pringle may be said to be the only South African poet. The attractions of sport and wild life in South Africa have produced many notable volumes. Chief among these stands “ Wild Sports of Southern THE AUTHOR. Africa,” the work of that accomplished and most enthusiastic of sportsmen, Sir William Cornwallis Harris. Cornwallis Harris was the forerunner of the big game hunters who have, since his time, penetrated to the uttermost recesses of the country in search of adventure, and his books (he pub- lished also « magnificent folio, “ Portraits of the Wild Game of South Africa”’), fired the blood of many an Englishman, and did much to attract attention to the lands between the Orange and the Zambesi. A sound naturalist and a competent artist, Harris illustrated his own works, which are to this day eagerly sought after at high prices by collectors of South African literature. Roualeyn Gordon Cumming was one of those led to South Africa by the glowing and romantic, but by no means overdrawn descriptions of Cornwallis Harris. Cumming has been too often imagined as the sportsman pure and simple, but his book, ‘Five Years of a Hunter’s Life,” proves him also the wielder of a ready and most descriptive pen. Many editions of this famous work have been brought out, and to this hour the book sells readily. Upon the whole it may be counted one of the liveliest and most graphic descriptions of great game hunting and of wild life ever published. Much and ably as he handled the rifle, Gordon Cumming was clearly an author of distinction ; writing was in his blood, and his sister, Miss C. F. Gordon Cumming, who, happily, still survives, has ably carried on the tradition, and given to the public many excellent volumes. No one can read Gordon Cumming’s work without being thrilled again and again by the wonderful feats performed, the legions of game encountered, and the speaking and most accurate delineations of the virgin veldt in which this great Nimrod was privileged to wander. The book will always and justly remain one of the classics of its kind. Among other notable hunters’ books are those of Andersson, Baldwin, Drummond, Selous, Bryden, Millais, and Vaughan Kirby. Andersson, a traveller of mixed Swedish and English descent, did much to open up the deserts of South West Africa, and his. chief volumes, ‘‘ Lake Ngami,” and “The Okavango River,” are good narratives of travel and adventure, written in sound and nervous English. Francis Galton’s “Tropical Africa” is another book of this period; Galton and Andersson were fellow travellers, but their narratives are equally well written and equally worth perusal. W. C. Baldwin, one of the greatest and most daring hunters that ever sought danger in South Africa, published a volume in the early sixties, which described his sporting career from Natal and Zululand to the Zambesi from 1852 to 1860. He has not the literary grace of Cornwallis Harris, nor the stirring and descriptive pen of Gordon Cumming, and his.  book is transcribed almost direct from his rough diaries. None the less, his “ African Sport from Natal to the Zambesi” is to this day one of the freshest and most fascinating of works dealing with wild life and adventure. He carries bis reader with him in all his feats. No man has succeeded more completely in depicting the joys, the dangers, and the difficulties of the hunter’s career. Drummond, Selous, Bryden, Millais, and Vaughan Kirby have dealt with a later period of the South African hunting veldt—that between 1871 and 1900. Each of these writers has, in his own way, ‘succeeded admirably in continuing, down to our own times, the enthralling narratives of earlier writers on sport and adventure in South Africa. Among missionaries, the names of Moffat and Livingstone stand easily first in the survey of South African literature. Moffat, whose long and notable career in the interior of South Africa will always be remembered with admiration, published in the forties a work dealing with mission scenes and travel from 1817 onwards, among uncouth tribes s and dangerous beasts, which undoubtedly had “ much influence upon innumerable readers. His * great son-in-law, David Livingstone, has done, 4 perhaps, more towards the opening up of savage Africa than all the other writers put together. A # man of indomitable strength of character, wonder- 1 ‘ful tact and wide attainments, Livingstone seems 4 to have had a natural gift for literature. His * “Missionary Travels,” published in 1857, is not only ably written, but is a monument of care, labour and research. No man who knows his South Africa can fail to be struck not only with the learning of this author, but with his immense ‘knowledge of every phase of the life of the South African interior. The power, the truthfulness, and the wonderful moderation of the man are shown in every page. The work of one other missionary deserves mention. This is the “ Austral Africa: Losing it or Ruling it,” of John Mackenzie, pub- lished in the eighties. This important book, written by the man who practically saved Bechu- canaland for the British, at the period—soon after Majuba—of our deepest abasement in South Africa, did much to rouse politicians and the public to a right view of our responsibilities South of the Zambesi. The History of South Africa has been touched by comparatively few hands. To Theal, undoubt- -edly, belongs the credit of the bulk of the some- _ what scanty output. His labours have been long ‘and arduous, and he has delved into the musty records of old Cape history and acquired much ‘solid information from native sources. Theal, however, has not always been able to avoid the meproach of partiality. His sympathies lie some- i Ke a Las Pe Fe a ae Ke red BS ReSoe woh ek RR es THER AUTHOR. 23 what too plainly with the Dutch, and the value of his works has in consequence been somewhat dis- counted. Still, notwithstanding the additional fact that his style is somewhat arid and unil- luminating, the public remain indebted to this copious writer for much sound and excellent in- formation. Theal, by the way, is not, as some suppose, an Afrikander, but was actually born in Canada. Among other adventurers into the paths of history are to be mentioned H. A. Bryden, whose “ History of South Africa,” from 1652 to 1903, is a fair and well written summary of a period teeming with interest. Among war books, Sir A. Conan Doyle’s “ History of the Great Boer War,” “Words by an Eye Witness,” by “Linesman,” and “On the Heels of De Wet,” deserve much more than passing notice, and stand head and shoulders above their fellows from among a cloud of fugitive literature. The Zimes “ History of the War” proceeds but slowly, and no more than three volumes have yet been issued. These, however, give the impression that the whole work, when complete, will be in- valuable as a work of reference, well written, fear- less and impartial. The war story of the redoubt- able De Wet himself can scarcely be classed as sound literature or impartial writing ; his facts are disputable and his prejudices openly violent. Two works which fall within the domain of history have been written by F. Edmund Garrett, once editor of the Cape Times. Mr. Garrett has thrown away upon journalism literary talents of a high order. If he could have spared the time and the inclination he might have produced work upon South Africa which few writers could have sur- passed. As itis, in his brief volume, ‘In Afrikander- land,” and in “The Story of an African Crisis,”’ we have two books for which we may be thankful. In the latter volume the true inwardness of the Jameson Raid is set forth in clear and unmistak- able fashion. Sir J. P. Fitzpatrick’s “ Transvaal from Within” deserves also a high place among historical works dealing with South Africa. Among all the names which thus far have been referred to, only that of Christian De Wet can be cited as South African Dutch. But unfortunately De Wet’s book can be classed neither as capable literature nor fair history. One volume, the work of an Afrikander born, published in Holland, and partially translated into English, does, however, deserve honourable mention. This is “ Wit de Geschiedenis van de Zuid-Afrikaansche Republick en van de Afrikaanders,” by ©. N. J. Du Plessis. ‘The passages translated into English by R. Acton have been entitled ‘‘ The ‘Transvaal Boer Speaking for Himself.’ This able and informing book is one which every Englishman who wishes to know some- thing of the Afrikander view of the Dutch South 24 African question ought to study. The pictures of Boer life and thought are singularly graphic, albeit told in simple and restrained language. We come now to the name of the one South African-born writer who has produced a really great work. This is, of course, Olive Schreiner (now Mrs. Cronwright-Schreiner), whose romance, “ The Story of an African Farm,” written nearly a score of years since, has created so great an impression upon her contemporaries. Its knowledge of South African life, its pessimism, the strange backwaters of thought into which it wanders, its strength, its tragedy and its mysticism, all unite to lay hold upon the reader’s imagination. It is a strong book, written by a born master of words, and it will live long after the great bulk of South African literature has passed away. Is Olive Schreiner, however, to be the “Single Speech Hamilton” in the literature of her time? 1t would almost seem so. We have had some few other works from her pen, but nothing that can for a moment compare with that sad yet wonderful book, *‘ The Story of an African Farm.” In the field of South African fiction the writers who have achieved success may be soon mentioned. After Olive Schreiner, Rider Haggard easily heads the list. In addition to that masterpiece of adven- turous romance, “ King Solomon’s Mines,” “ Jess,” “Allan’s Wife,” “The Witch’s Head,” “ Maiwa’s Revenge,” and other novels, all bespeak, from the South African point of view, the well earned popularity of this vigorous writer of fiction. “« Jess” is as fine and as true a picture of Trans- vaal life in the early eighties as it is possible to imagine, and the pathetic story of Jess herself can never fail to interest. H.A. Bryden, first known as a writer on sport and travel, has made various successful forays into the domains of romance. His intimate knowledge of the life of the veldt, the hunting Boer, and the native, have aided him much in these excursions. In his “Tales of South Africa,” “ From Veldt Camp Fires,” “Ton Duarte’s Treasure,” and “ An Exiled Scot,” are to be found some excellent imaginative writing. Bertram Mit- ford’s novels of South African adventure are well known. The reader of a rattling tale knows that in books such as “The Induna’s Wife,” ‘The White Shield,” and so forth, he will not be disap- pointed. W. C.Scully’s South African tales are good literature, and are well worth reading. They are, moreover, informed by a peculiar and accurate knowledge of South Africa, acquired by long residence in that country. “ Kaffir Stories,” « Between Sun and Sand,” and “A Vendetta of the Desert,” are distinctly above the ordinary level of imaginative work. It is somewhat curious that although Rudyard Kipling now resides for some portion of each THE AUTHOR. winter at the Cape of Good Hope he has produced no important romantic work on South Africa— nothing, at all events, to compare with “ Plain Tales from the Hills,” “ Kim,” ‘The Naulahka,” and other stories of India. The British public must live in hopes that a writer who has done so much for the East may one of these days give them a real book dealing with South Africa. Morley Roberts has, too, visited South Africa, and pene- trated even to Rhodesia; yet, up to the present time, he seems in his work to have left the countries neu of the Zambesi and their denizens severely alone. In a brief survey of this kind it is manifestly impossible to do anything like full justice to so wide a subject. We have indicated only the main outlines of the literature of South Africa between 1775 and the present time. —______.+—~<—___<_ AN IMPRESSION OF THE INTER- NATIONAL CONGRESS OF THE PRESS. — S a delegate from The British International Association of Journalists—a society estab- lished to enable British Newspapermen to come into touch with their foreign comrades—I attended the Tenth International Congress of the Press, at Liege. I had not an entirely open mind. When I was President of the Institute of Journalists by Royal Charter Incorporated in 1900--1, I had certainly not exerted my influence in favour of affiliation to the Bureau Central, the headquarters of cosmopolitan journalism. My idea of the typical foreign pressman was a revolutionist, a socialist, a thoroughly unpractical, unbusiness- like enthusiast. My impression had in part been created by the testimony of those who had known the foreign pressman in his own country. If I had given the matter perhaps adequate considera- tion, I would have remembered that the Foreign Press Association in England—of which I have the honour of being an hon. member—consists entirely of absolutely respectable and highly culti- vated gentlemen. But truth to tell T attended the International Congress of the Press in July last with a mind only partly open. What did I find at Liege? ‘To my surprise some three hundred to four, hundred scholars and gentlemen quite the equals—my patriotism prevents me from suggesting the superiors—of the best of the representatives of the Fourth Estate of our Realm. The work of the conference was devoted to the consideration of copyright, the protection of the liberty of the Press, the question of notice, and a number of kindred subjects.  There was not an item on the agenda that would have been out of place on the list of the con- ference of our own Institute of Journalists at Bournemouth, with the possible exception of a resolution condemning duelling amongst journalists. This last gave rise to a very exciting debate which nearly ended in personal encounters. It was unanimously resolved that duelling was barbarous and should be prohibited, but when it was proposed that combats when they did take place shouid not be reported there arose a mighty shout of all but universal indignation. Even I as a delegate of the British International Association of Journalists raised my voice in defence of the rights of the author of the contents bill. Fora moment it seemed possible that the visit to Ostend on the programme might be utilised for assisting in the revival of the old fashioned menu, ‘ Pistols —loaded—for two. Coffee—with chasse—for one.” But happily the congress ended—as it began—in peace. It was notable that one of the items of tle agenda, “ The Dignity of the Press,” was practi- cally illustrated. The members of the congress were treated by everyone with profound respect. We were received in full uniform by members of the Government, heads of municipalities, and governors of provinces. At Brussels we were granted an audience by the king himself. His Majesty Leopold II. attired as a general and wearing his decorations gave evidence of his powers as a linguist by speaking fluently in English, French, and German to the guests—most of them much decorated—he seemed so anxious to honour. He appeared to take the deepest interest in the International Press. I myself at his invita- tion was able to give him a great deal of informa- tion—of course, of a highly satisfactory character —of the present condition of journalism in the United Kingdom and the United States. The king is certainly highly popular amongst his own subjects. Hecreated a most favourable impression amongst the delegates to the International Con- gress of the Press. At “The Lunch” in the palace after the reception, praise and nothing but praise mingled with the harmonious strains of the music of the Guides. In conclusion I am convinced that it is a mistake to avoid communion with our brothers of the pen across the water, the more especially as I found our foreign comrades ready, nay anxious, to offer us the hand of hearty good fellowship. Artaur WILLIAM 4 BECKETT. ——_——__+-——_+_____—- THE AUTHOR. 25 ENGLISH WRITERS AND JOURNALISTS IN BOHEMIA. —— os T has been a very interesting and noteworthy I experience that has fallen to the lot of a party of writers, members of the British International Association of Journalists, who have this summer made a tour through some of the most romantic, yet but little known, parts of Bohemia. Last year the Austrian Ministry of Railways offered facilities over the State Railways if I would arrange a party for a tour through Bohemia ; but as I had to act as secretary to the English delegation at the Vienna International Press Congress, I found the work too heavy to combine the two events, but the ministry then promised the same facilities for this year ; and, as I knew from long study of Bohemia, what a glorious “unknown land” the little mountain- encircled kingdom is to Englishmen, I gladly, with the assiduous help of Prof. Borovsky, of Prague, arranged the party of fifteen men and five ladies; writers on English, Scotch, Irish and Welsh journals, including such papers as_ the Times, Pall Mall Gazette, Telegraph, Queen, Man- chester Guardian, Trish Times, Gas World, Engi- neer, and other Irish, Scotch, and Welsh papers. Having visited Bohemia some twenty times, I had often, when travelling with my artist friends, and others, received the most cordial help, and often hospitality, all over Bohemia, and knew how heartily Bohemia thanks any who work to make her country and history known. How distorted that history has been writers such as Prof. Morfil, Mr. Wratislaw, and Count Lutzow, are now proving in English publications. But our astounding warm-hearted reception by peasant and people, journalists, artists and authors, musicians and municipalities, has overwhelmed us with its fervour. The history of Bohemia is so linked with that of England at critical moments in the life and death struggle in each land. In Bohemia, preserved in the lore of the people, are cameos of English history, lost to our historians, yet of high import : it was the discovery of some of these that excited me to visit Bohemia again and again, and thus | learnt the intense gratitude the Bohemians evince to those who interest themselves in their country and people. On crossing the frontier we were met by Prof. Borovsky, the learned director of the Rudolphinum at Prague, and on arriving at the capital Dr. Srb, the learned and courteous burgomaster, and the city council met us at the station, and, with a hearty welcome, escorted the party in carriages to 26 the Hotel de Saxe, right hospitably informing us we were the guests of the city during our stay in Prague ; and, as this article deals with the literary and artistic aspects of the tour, let me say, in few, yet earnest words, that in every town the recep- tions and hospitality have been more than regal, for they have been from the heart and soul of the people. At every station municipalities received us; at villages, during the three days’ driving, halts had to be made to reply to greetings of the village authorities, and great crowds gave hearty “Na Zadrs” in town and village. Ladies pre- sented the loveliest bouquets to our ladies, and the younger ladies pelted us with roses and flowers: at Pilsen, as at Prague, for three days we were the guests of the town, under the presidency of Dr. Groh. At Prachatic, where some twenty years ago Walter Crane, another friend and myself, were the first English to visit this quaint mediaval town, we were quartered in the houses of the principal resi- dents, who all rose at five a.m. to give us break- fast, and speed the parting guests as we drove away over the hills to Husinec. Throughout the route lessons have been driven into our minds through eye and ear, which, if England could learn, and act upon, would make town and country life with us more enjoyable, and our land would give her increase in every waste corner. At Prague the magnificent museums, with their careful historic and sectional arrangement, sur- prised the British visitors by their number and riches, and it is not often given to a writer to see his own work in a museum, but in a case in the National Museum are arranged the works of English writers of to-day, who have written on the history of Bohemia. Deeply interesting are the works and relics of the great period in the history of Bohemia, when the Wiclifites, through their leader Zizka, shook even the power of Rome, and conquered that “desert country by the sea,” to the Baltic, to which Shakespeare refers. Many a pet idea has been crushed upon the journey. The idea that the Bohemians are thrift- less, dirty, lazy agitators, has been swept away. Every inch of soil is utilised; the cottages are clean ; in one I entered by hazard, fresh tree branches were in each room ; the man earned Is. 6d. a day, and on asking why he had thus decorated, “Oh,” he said, “ we always do that, the scent is so sweet ; it is healthy.” From earliest morn until night they are jovially active, quick, alert, and, when listening to music, never break in with applause until the final note of the accompanist has ceased. Never again, I think, will any of our party compare Bohemia with Ireland. Agitate they certainly do, these Bohemians, but by self- help, in such numerous and wonderful ways that astounded our Jrish members, and we had ardent THE AUTHOR. Nationalists, Home Rulers, and Orangemen in our party. At the town of Kutna Hora (Kuttenberg) a delightful reception awaited us in the historic little council chamber, the decoration of which is so artistic : the walls being illuminated with powerful paintings of Hus demanding the liberties for the Bohemians in the Prague University, and George of Podiebrad being chosen king. The intense reverence for Hus in a country where nearly all are members of the Roman Church was beyond credence to our own members of that church. It was a wonderful scene in the great church of St. Barbara, when, as we entered, the great organ pealed forth, and then, as we foreigners were led to the choir steps, and faced the church crowded with the people, chorales were sung by a great choir; the memento was supreme in effect and beauty, yet full of reminiscences of the terrific history that had been enacted there, when our own great, but forgotten, Englishman, Peter Payne, had led the Bohemians and controverted the argu- ments by that other great Englishman, Cardinal Beaufort. At Domazlice we witnessed scenes more brilliant than any opera. The peasants in Sunday dress in blaze of colour; and right lustily they piped, and danced, and sang. One had to assure our friends it was not an arranged dressing up, but the ordinary Sunday or féte day costume. Another illusion dispelled is that the English are not musical. Professor Sevcik, the great master of Kubelik and Marie Hall, has swept that from our minds. We met the master at Prague, and at a reception arranged by the Anglo-American Club some of his pupils played, Mrs. Mitchell and Miss Graham, delightfully, artistically, powerfully. Only two here, but at Prachatic one heard Miss Hayward, whose technique and expression are wonderful, and at the little village of Husinec, where, before the birthplace of John Hus, mayor and villagers greeted us, we heard, in the theatre of the village, the four Misses Lucas, who played with a fervour, precision, and brilliancy that swept away traces of the thought that (given the teacher) the English are not musical. We also, at Budweis, heard the famous Sevcik quartette, and the “Smetana” Men’s Choir at Pilsen. The Bohemian masters and composers have conquered the world to-day, and the Austrian system of education discovers and fosters genius, be it born in village, town, or city, be it musical or artistic, technical, commercial, or agricultural. What an experience was it for our English women to sit down to an exquisite lunch at Domaz- lice, to be waited upon by young ladies, daughters of M.P.’s and doctors, dressed in most artistic dresses, and to be informed that the lunch was prepared, cooked and served by the young ladies,  THE AUTHOR. pg and that the dresses, lace, and needlework were all their own handiwork, for they were students at the local cooking and needlework schools. In the theatres we heard the works of Dvorak, Smetana and Nedbal, so that our whole progress was enveloped in culture, art, and music, and this in a country that even to-day guide-books, like Baedaker’s, hardly notice, giving only ten lines to a town like Pilsen, and for an historic old castle like Bésig, full of architectural and historic in- terest, merely noting the fact there is a ruin there. But Bohemia, the real Bohemia, not such places as Carlsbad and Marienbad, is no longer e sealed country to English travellers, and her wealth of river and mountain scenery is a lovely setting to a most interesting people. JAMES BAKER. —_———_+—>—_+__——_ THE WAY OF JOURNALISM. —_+——+- T is so brief a time ago that I was writing letters of pathetic appeal to famous authors and great editors (enclosing essays, poems, stories, and other samples of my genius), that I can never bring myself to write a cross or a hurried note to the people who now sadden me with a sense of age by asking for my counsel in the difficulties of their journalistic careers. But, unlike famous authors and great editors, I have neither secretary nor clerk at my elbow to whom I can dictate the softest of blandishments, and therefore the will to write kindly and helpful letters to my unknown correspondents suffers, I find with shame, more and more in the increasing demands of my work. Therefore it is that the request of the Editor of The Author to send him a brief article, is heralded by me as an excellent opportunity for composing one letter general of the whole question, which for the rest of my life I may be able to send through the halfpenny post to future correspondents, pleasing, and I hope, help- ing them, while it will deliver me in some small measure from the dreadful exactions of corres- pondence, and excuse me from all discourtesy. * * *k ac aS Let me begin by protesting my conviction that there is not an editor in London who is not anxiously searching for writers with something to say. The conviction, common to many minds, that editors can only be reached through a personal introduction, and that they are quite careless of the literary contents of their papers, is a wrong conviction, a conviction which must be broomed out of the mind as soon as possible. It is true that in some cases a letter of intro- duction may secure publication of a characterless essay which would otherwise have found its way back to the author ; but never, I am sure, does the wine of good copy need the bush of influence. It is a truth that editors,—who are, remember, competitors one against the other,—are searchin ¢ the world for writers. ‘Treasure this truth; and instead of railing against ignorant editors, labour so to observe the world, and so to express your observations, that there shall not be one editor in London unwilling to receive you into his bosom. This is the beginning of the gospel of journal- ism—absolute faith in the discernment of editors. Assured in his soul of this belief, and emptying his mind of all little schoolboy conceits and under- graduate extravagances, let the beginner consider well within his soul how he shall present himself before these gods of the Press. What shall he write about, and in what manner shall he write ? Begin by knowing that there is no subject under the sun, howsoever beautiful, howsoever profound, howsoever urgent, which can hope to be admitted to the feast if it be not clothed in the wedding garment of interest. The newspaper is meant to interest people. Its mission may be as high as you please, but it must interest. ‘‘ If God tires you” said Fénelon, “tell him so.” The world has a mighty mission, we suppose, but if it did not interest us there would be neither man of science nor poet of nature. And the newspaper may be educating people, may be guiding opinion, may be forming taste, but if it be not crammed with interest it will have no readers. Choose, then, your subjects from the point of interest. Look out upon the world and see what most interests the marching ranks of humanity. Consider yourself not as the great captain of the host, nor yet as the chaplain of the forces, but rather as the minstrel called to the camp-fires to beguile the quiet hours which separate the march from the battle. Do not- be afraid to be humble. The greatest of journalists can never hope to play a part greater than Homer played before the warriors of Greece. Your chief labour must be observation. You must study men and women, you must study nature, you must study literature. You cannot be a great writer if you are not a cluse observer. Unless you have seen a thing more clearly than other people have seen it, you have no excuse for writing. It is only when you have cultivated the seeing eye, only when you have seen and reflected upon what all the rest of the world has merely glanced at, that you can have justification for desiring the attention of the newspaper reader. You must not be afraid to feel. Cultivate in yourself the gift of sympathy, the faculty of responsiveness. Never let your own personality get between the retina of your consciousness and 28 the vibrations of the image of humanity. Stand on one side to receive the picture. The picture is of more importance than your own notions of propriety. Do not condemn the tears of Little Nell till you have drawn a finer character than Mrs. Nickleby. Feel joy and feel pain as other people feel them. Have sympathy with all men. Then, when you have observed the world, and when you have cultivated in your mind the gift of sympathy with humanity, consider the style in which you shall present your reflections to the reader. At first you are sure to begin jumpily, self-consciously, with grimaces and contortions, aping the styles of other men, and murdering them. Do not be disheartened. Put these early writings on one side, and look at them six weeks hence. Through the blushes and the tears which will cover you with confusion you may yet see in that poor article of yours more clearly than in all the works of all the greatest geniuses, your own sure road to success. You will see exactly where you were affected, where you were unnatural, where you were pompous, where you were stupid, and where yoa were tedious. You will see exactly how to avoid all these mistakes in future; and practice will gradually bring you into the kingdom of your own natural style. Do not write a great deal, but write something every day. Let the act of writing become easy to you. And strive above all things so to become interested in your subject that you are carried away by it, and know not how you have written, scarce, indeed, what you have written, till the last word is drawn from your soul. Then when the creative side of your brain has done its work, let the critical emerge and do its work as well. Go over the paper again and again, striking out every word that rings falsely, scratching out every sen- tence that is unessential, and buckling up the whole composition so that it reads with a rhythm from beginning to end, and has not one dull line or one impertinent word from the first to the last. Avoid as far as possible a painful search for ‘the inevitable word.” He is a bad writer who makes you pause to say “ that’s a good word,” or “ that’s a brave phrase” ; he is a great writer who carries you under the magic of his art away from all such questions of style and effect, and clean transports you into the region of his fancy. Study to be natural. Employ all the graces of language and all the felicities of manner which are within your reach, and which commend themselves to your critical faculty ; but just so far, and not a comma farther, than they are natural to you. In this manner would I speak (not, I hope, too didactically), to the boy setting out with his pen to fight the world. But there is yet one more THE AUTHOR. word to say. A quicker road to success than lies in writing articles, and verses, and stories from your own room, is that which takes the observer into the streets of the town and makes him a chronicler of the day’s drama. I would advise a young man who desires to be a thorough jour- nalist, to set his affections upon one paper, and to drop into the editor’s letter-box, night after night, some brief record of the day’s events, some story or description, so full of interest and human curiosity, that it must ueeds take a front place in the morn- ing’s paper. Such work—if it be finely done— though ill-rewarded at first, ends, I am sure, in that first step to success, a permanent employ- ment on the editorial staff. This I believe to be the royal road to journalism, and, perhaps, there are fewer people walking this way than on any other path of human activity. I do not think there is a more interesting profession open to men than this fast and furious profession of daily letters: but it is a profession full of bitterness for the bad or inefficient work- man, and full of disappointment for the stubborn, self-preaching, egoist. Its prizes are for men capable of repressing their own gospels of sal- vation, and cheerfully willing to serve the public in the capacity of gossip and tale-teller. And from the beginning to the end it means work,—hard, honest, conscientious, and devoted work. If a man be a keen observer, if he be modest in his ambitions, and if he work with all his heart, and with all his mind, and with all his soul,—seeking always to interest his patrons—he will need but little elbowing and pushing to reach the rewards of journalism. Haroup BEGBIE. 1 WANTED—A NEW MODEL! —— \ \ JE have to-day such an accumulation of magazines that our bookstalls lie sub- merged under them, as beneath the waves of an ever-flowing, ever-increasing tide. Each month gees a new one, if not more, and they all fight desperately for existence, in a blatant war- fare of sensationalism. But with all this ‘water, water everywhere’ many of us find ‘not a drop to drink.’ We are up to the chin in stuff we cannot swallow, and find little or nothing upon which to quench our literary thirst. For, to many of us, these highly glazed, highly coloured, highly adver- tised and emphasised magazines afford a kind of mental nausea, and the sight of a bookstall groan- ing under them is like a table spread with gorgeous empty platters before a hungry man. Why should there be nothing in them that we  i can read—we, that section of the British public 4) whose taste has been trained not to enjoy Choppy 4G Bits or Royal Family Magazines, or Rushed Re- views, or Mincemeat Monthlies? Is it for our ai sins? What have we done? And where are all ‘ge our good short story writers—those whose work we af find occasionally in volume form? We look in e, vain within the pages of our journals for the “fj thoughtful, literary, stimulating work of those i whose tales used to appear now and again in 94 periodicals, but now only in book form. We Ms all know a choice half dozen or so, forgotten ud by the world, who have given us promise of vie greatness. Where are they ? Once in a blne 2 moon we meet one of them, but his work seems to sf have crept into the magazine by acgident, and iii through no fault of the editor ! Forfonr monthly i and weekly magazines are now devoted to the de obvious and commonplace; nothing original, ide subtle or in any way unconventional ever seems to ai find_a place in them. \ Cheir aim is all to please a class that delights in i crude sensation, intricate plot, rapid incident and “1 treacly sentiment ; that revels in pictures of men ¥) flying at each other’s throats, falling off precipices “1 or being shot out of motor cars. To this class it does 64 not matter how ancient, how trivial or how im- “ possible the story, how badl y the English language is maltreated, so long as something happens in we every paragraph, something that can be decorated i with blood-curdling illustrations, and so long as “d the pages are cut up into loose dialogue, plentifully “ sprinkled with sentimentality and notes of ex- 5. clamation. _ But are our editors entirely right in thinking wf that only this kind of stuff will sell? Is nothing 4 else wanted? These are questions we may reason- ‘) ably ask ourselves when we see the better class of & American magazines— Harpers, Scribners, Atlantic Monthly, The Century, ete—pouring into our market, lying about on our tables; and this in | spite of the fact that we are not particularly interested in long articles dealing with American / statesmen and generals. Why do we want all 4) these, why encourage literary aliens ? The answer ® is plain enough. Because they give us something * we need, that no English magazine gives us. Because we’ve nothing of our own to compare with them in literary excellence, in freshness, fancy and advanced thought. This is written with all due respect to the best magazines we have, to Blackwood, Macmillan, Temple Bar, Longman’s and one or two more who honestly strive to reach a certain standard. No work that is slovenly or abject gets into their pages, and we are grateful forthem. But are they not—let it be whispered under our breath and with reverence— are they not just a trifle dull and more than a THE AUTHOR. 29 trifle stereotyped ? Do they ever dare to print a new and startling idea, a subtle or highly imavina- tive piece of work ? Must not the thing that is acceptable to them be moulded on a certain pattern, worked out upon lines that have become familiar to their readers, by constant repetition, for a generation or so? / Do they not, in fact, represent toryism in letters, and stand up against innovation in any form, as pillars of propriety and established order ? Of course many persons will stoutly maintain that all the tales of the world have been told, and that we can but tell them over and over again. Human nature, they will say, is human nature, and remains just as it was centuries and exons ago; nothing alters but the unessential and everything goes on just as it did. They say this, but do they believe it, or is it one of those trite doctrines that are accepted without sifting, and therefore without true conviction? Can anyone seriously believe that the thoughts and emotions of—say a modern stockbroker—resemble in any sense, those of an Ancient Briton, or even an Arthurian Knight ? Certain elemental desires, it is true, remain tolerably constant through the ages, but they are always resolving into new forms, new ideas, new motives, new opinions; always casting up new problems. Just as there are chemical changes taking place continually in matter, so are there psychic changes in the immaterial elements that go to the making of individuals and of states. This is mere truism, and yet there are folk who would seem to wish us to believe that the men and women of to-day, the day of automobilism, wireless telegraphy, and the hourly out-pouring of the press, do not differ from the men and women who existed a thousand years before the stage coach, the six- penny post and the weekly news sheet. It is this curious, half-formed belief that is the cause of our monotonous story-telling. It offers a reason why our fiction still teems with forged wills, stolen diamonds, wards who fall in love with their guardians, silly lovers who are parted by plotting rivals, pattern-plate love affairs of un- interesting young persons, everlasting cases of mistaken identity and so forth ad nauseam. Everything is turned out to order and sample, as if made by machinery ; nothing original, profound or suggestive is permitted ; every situation must be expected, obvious, based on fixed and accepted canons ; and all the vital changes that are working beneath the surface, all the complications of human passion, motive and aspiration, the things that really matter and really interest the thoughtful— where are they? We find them in our novels, some of them; there is no taboo against the clash of physical and psychic forces, the most searching soul analysis, in our books. But in the ‘ family 380 magazine,’ whose pages are filled with glowing accounts of our most famous courtezans, illustrated with pictures of their bedrooms and boudoirs, the merest suggestion of a moral problem is rigidly ex- cluded. Our wives and daughters may read of, and sigh for, the almost fabulous gifts of fortune that fall at the feet of a modern Messalina, but their chaste eyes must not rest upon the word ‘passion’ or read about a sex problem ! This, of course, is but one of the subjects tabooed in our magazines, one that needs great delicacy of treatment and can easily be done to death. But where are all those other ideas and subjects that inspired our short story writers in the past, that gave us Scenes from Clerical Life, The Beleaguered City, Will o° the Mill and Markheim ; that sent us from over the water the Van Bidder Stories, the fine analytical studies of Henry James and the inimitable character sketches of Mary E. Wilkins ? Have we no one to-day who can write thus, with intellectual insight and ineffable charm? The man who set himself to read all our magazines for the current month (were that possible) might well think so. It is the conviction of the present writer that he would be wrong. Judging from certain volumes it is safe to conclude that the supply is not lacking, but the demand—or rather, the market for its appearance. There can be little doubt that, stowed away in dusty drawers and cup- boards, lies a neglected mass of original work as fine as any we have had, work that has been refused by every editor in London purely on account of ‘unsuitability ;’ much of it by well-known writers now pot-boiling in disgust ; the rest by un- known talent, striving in the dark for perfection. For while the famous author may always cherish a hope of seeing his storiettes appear in a volume, on the strength of his name, the untamed can never expect that chance, unless he publishes them at his own expense. Say, is this not true, authors—men and women ? Have you not all certain darlings of your mind that you are well convinced are of your highest inspiration and best execution, yet know. to be utterly outside the market? Is there one of you who has not some such ware hidden away in dust and darkness, waiting for the magazine that is so long a-coming, that seems as if it never will come ? But surely it musé come, sooner or later. The demand is growing, the supply must follow. We want it badly—the Great English Magazine that is to send the Americans home and give us literature, thought, ideas, art, of our own; something upon which our intellect and imagination can feed, by which our genius can be stimulated. Not the poor, puny, but well-meant effort of a little literary THE AUTHOR. clique or mutual admiration society ; not a vehicle for morbid melancholy, or flippant Anglo-Gallicism or any of the thousand cults that afflict society We have seen enough of such anemic failures they are moribund from their birth. Our Great English Magazine must be sound and solvent, under sane and sober management, subject to no whims or freaks, dependent upon no small colerie, no sing] influence. ‘There must be a business head behind it, as well asa thinkev’s brain, an artist’s taste, an enthusiast’s heart. It must be published by a strong syndicate—one that can wait (which is to ~ say, that a large capital is indispensable), and edited by more than one distinguished man 0 letters. Moreover, it must be fearless and catholic, regardless of Mrs. Grundy and the Young Person, while, rejecting all that is ugly and plague-_ spotted, catering for every taste that may claim to be called taste, aiming not merely at what will pay now, but what will stand fast and firm in th future, both as a literary model and a financial investment. This New Model, then, must be daring with — discretion, independent, lofty and secure. Hvery-_ thing about it must be of the best possible; the” best paper and print, pictures (if it has any), poetry and prose, that can be bought for gold and — found by discernment. Who knows what buried treasures it might bring to light, what brilliant fiction from masters almost silent, what poems, what essays? Who knows what obscure genius it might reveal? Have we lost all faith in ourselves, in the English spirit that inspired Chaucer and Shakespeare, Fielding and Defoe? Are we content to go on for ever wallowing in Choppy Bits and Monthly Magazines of Mincemeat ? We want this new magazine—we want it desperately—as a medium for our creative thought, our artistic development. All that which has made England’s great literary past—her poetic conception, her spiritual profundity, her mordant satire, her crisp humour, her perception of and deep insight into character—can find no place now either in the crusted and cobwebby pages of our high-class magazines and reviews (meritorious as they are up to a certain point), and far less in the gaudy and obstreperous outpourings of Carmelite and Henrietta Streets. The former are too timorous of giving offence; the latter are mere money-making machines, frankly spurning any- thing that resembles literature. We need an open space to grow in, unlimited by the restrictions of conservatism, unchoked by the weeds of com- mercialism. In fact, we need a home for the soul of things literary. The shells and husks of a pas age will not serve us much longer; we hunger already for something more satisfying, for a glimpse into the heart and brain of humanity, for research  into the meaning and tendencies of our present life, into the problems and potentialities of the future. And the time is ripe. Such a magazine as this we desire would not make the fortunes of its promoters in a few short years. At first there would be unavoidable loss on it. But in time to come it would be as surely ‘a good property’ as | it would bea national boon. The British public { has an instinctive leaning towards everything _ aristocratic, a deeply inherited sense of respect for what is noble ; and once convince it that the new | magazine is an aristocrat in letters, that it is read by all those of cultured taste, and you will soon see that magazine on the table of every householder who can afford a shilling a month, whether he read _ itor not. And why should he not read it? He must buy and read good books, or our masterpieces would not be reprinted by thousands yearly. Is there any reason then, why he should not appre- ciate a good magazine if it were set before him? As a matter of fact there are thousands of readers to-day who have given up taking in periodicals » simply because they can find nothing they care to _ read in them. Are we to sit till Doomsday under the ban of _ being a nation of shopkeepers, ignorant of art, of all that is subtle, beautiful and refined? Are we really less capable of artistic judgment or creation than our neighbours, the French, or our cousins, the Americans? Do not believe it. We have a populace for Choppy Bits, and so have they, no less vulgar and attracted by gimcracks. But we have also a public that thirsts for something better, that is, perhaps, the most thoughtful and earnest reading public in the world. All we want is a leader of courage, a man who can command both confidence © and capital. It is for him to step boldly over the | dead bodies of past failures, heeding them only with a view to profit by their errors, and to throw himself into the present breach with pluck and enterprise. Englishmen have never shown a lack of pluck or enterprise in other adventures ; they fling their energies and their gold daily into the wildest speculations. Can no one be found to face arisk in this most urgent cause? There never was yet a cause in England, however forlorn, that lacked a champion to lead it. Where is he ? Mary L. PENDERED. ——__—__+—~—« S THE TRADE IN BOOKS. SS OOKS are unlike ordinary articles of com- merce in one important respect, viz. : that their use and enjoyment does not depend upon personal ownership. The loan of a book may THE AUTHOR. 3L be, and often is, far more valuable to the reader than the ownership of the same book by gift or purchase. A book that is /ent can be read and returned to the owner, its purpose being fully served by this process. A book that is bought entails both the cost of purchase and the provision by the owner of suitable storage or house room. Many owners of books possess fine libraries with- out ever making use of them for reading. They may, in fact, have no taste for reading at all, and may be quite content to own books for the use and enjoyment of others who have the taste for reading, and the knowledge to make use of books. The principal and permanent obstacle to the extension of the ordinary trade in books is the common desire to read books without the cost of buying and housing them. For one person that desires to possess a book by purchase many hun- dreds of persons desire, for all sorts of reasons, to read books and make use of them without purchase. The reading of a book may or may not lead to a subsequent purchase. In the vast majority of cases books, however valuable and instructive, will be read and returned without purchase. But the public which can obtain books on loan possesses at least the great advan- tage of being able to form their own opinion about books, instead of merely reading what other persons think about them. It is, of course, open to question whether increased facilities for reading new books will necessarily lead to increased sales. The reading public, including many authors, will probably say yes. Publishers as a class evidently think not. The circulating library provides indeed a small concession to the popular demand for books on loan. But it is notorious that the public wants are very imperfectly supplied by libraries of this class. Delays and difficulties of many kinds are incidental to the business of lending libraries, as every sub- scriber knows to his cost. It is obvious that when many persons desire to read at the same time some new and popular book the great majority of readers must either buy the book for themselves, or wait an indefinite time until their turn comes round. Moreover, many of the most valuable and costly works appeal only to a limited class, and these never find their way into circulating libraries at all. The condition of purchase, in fact, excludes these works from general circulation altogether. The question naturally arises why the popular demand for books of all kinds om loan cannot be met on reasonable business terms without obstruc- tion or delay ? The ideal system of book supply would provide reasonable facilities to responsible applicants to peruse and form their own opinion regarding new books of all kinds. If this general principle be kept in view there are many different 82 ways in which effect might be given to it. For example, publishers might, if they thought fit, combine to establish a central library or book exchange where all the new publications advertised from week to week might be on view, and all reasonable facilities be provided for perusal on the spot, and for examination by all responsible persons. Persons who desired to read such books at their own leisure, and in their own homes, might be encouraged to do so by the arrangement of some proper system of granting copies 0” loan, the terms charged being based upon the published price, and the nature of each work. Some scheme based on these lines would increase greatly the value of all publishers’ circulars, which under present con- ditions are of no value at all except to a very small class. Professional reviewing of books is likely to be improved materially by enabling the reading public to form for themselves their own estimate of books ; and probably reviewers themselves would be the first persons to welcome a new departure on the lines proposed. There are, no doubt, many other ways in which the public demand for access to new books might be largely encouraged if publishers thought it desirable. Whether they would lead to increased sales or not may, of course, be disputed ; but there can be no doubt at all that books would be adver- tised far more effectually by encouraging the public to read them than is possible under the present system of circulars and literary reviews. This system is intended to promote sales, but those who desire to read without purchase are apt to be entirely indifferent to the opinions of professional critics, and will always preter to form their own opinions for themselves without guidance. Apart from these considerations it seems on general principles to be quite clear that the public demand for the perusal of new publications without any intention or desire to purchase is one which ought, on mere business principles, to be met in some way or another. As long as new books can be obtained by purchase only the vast majority of readers will simply refrain from reading them until access can be obtained on some more favourable terms. Authors as well as publishers are con- siderably interested in this question. The existing system has been created by publishers primarily for the protection of their own interests as capita- lists and producers. In this capacity they are simple monopolists, and are little likely, as all experience shows, to take a very enlightened view either of public interests or of their own advantage. Publishers will of course contend that they know their own business far better than any irresponsible critic ; but authors may reasonably complain that the interests of the reading public—which is the final court of appeal—are not sufficiently consulted ’ THE AUTHOR. in this matter. If effect could be given to the proposals suggested readers would assuredly be — multiplied a hundredfold, and the whole trade in books would receive an impetus which might go — far to reconcile even the most conservative pub- lisher to a radical change of system. In any case — the subject is one which seems to be well worth | consideration by all who are interested in books, either as authors, publishers, or readers. Si quid novisti rectius istis, candidus imperti, si non his utere mecum. $+ CORRESPONDENCE. —t+—< + Sir,—The following may possibly be of interest to members of the Society :— In 1882-1887 I brought out a “History of Freemasonry” which, in the then absence of Inter- national copyright, was promptly pirated in the United States and euphoniously described by the publishers (John C. Yorston & Co.) as the “American Edition,’ and in the preparation of it I was said to have been “assisted” by three prominent American masons, whose “ assistance,” by the way, had been totally unknown to me. Last year (1904) I placed on the market “A Concise History of Freemasonry,” which was pub- lished in this country by Gale and Polden, of 2, Amen Corner, E.C.; and (a real ‘ American Edition”) by the Macoy Company, of 34, Park Row, New York, in accordance with the Inter- national Copyright Act of 1891. In the Keystone (Philadelphia) of June 17th, 1905, on the eighth page of which the name of John ©. Yorston is given as “managing editor,” there appears (p. 10): “Nearly ready, new revised unabridged American edition of Robert Freke Gould’s ‘Complete History of Freemasonry,’ to be issued in five volumes, revised down to the present time, 1905, and to which is added new additional matter and features of great interest and impor- tance. . . . The Board of Editors are all recognised authorities throughout the world pertaining to all Masonic matters and history, and Ir Is THE ONLY {sic} official and standard authority in the world.” ‘Further particulars,” it is also stated, “may be obtained of the John C. Yorston Publishing Co., Philadelphia.” For impudence, the above will be hard to beat, — and I shall conclude by expressing a hope that the ~ efforts of the publishers, together with those of the “ Board of Editors ’”»—whose names have not yet been revealed—to float an “American Edition” of my original “ History of Freemasonry ” may meet with the fate they deserve. R. F. GouLp. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Author, Vol. 16 Issue 01 (October 1905) Subject The topic of the resource <em>The Author</em>, Vol. 16 Issue 01 (October 1905) Type The nature or genre of the resource Publication Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context 1905-10-01-The-Author-16-1 publications The Author