MOTIVES OF AUTHORSHIP.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 514, 22 May 1909, Page 9

MOTIVES OF AUTHORSHIP.

":' "Why be an author?" wa3 tho subject of : v 'an entertaining by -his Honour ■ Judge Parry'., at tho Manchester "Athenaeum : A"'".-, recently. Judge Parry gave as ; a, text tho words in ' t]cclesiast&3/:f} ( of "thG mnking.bf boolis-thero ■ V.■ is 110 end, and- much 'stiidy ; is a weariness ' S'.v v of • -the vflesh'." v .;';'" : V^e : recdgniM.; to-day;".,'ho ~;','vVsaid, that ;.bbplmakmg';in; all :; its branches' ■•is n natural pursuit-of. tho uiiomployed who :; - v honesfcly Gbrivo. to-livd-by; .'their wits.::-If tho-making pt„books was reedgnised as 1 1> . national nuisance ,in tho days of Solomon, ■ much more.must.itbe so. to-ciay,: v.-}ien ; booko . . aro .fast .ceasing .to bb saleable, and liavo' to "be given-away with up-to-date ;orbut-of-date .'. .; newspapers, pounds of tea, or other doubtful .t>:' >//irierchandise.-/:'' If,".'theref6rejVthe;tsupply.. of t .. trouble might be : abat<id, and it'becomes, a. ~ilreasonable ;thing 'for one ' 7 who .has: been-guiltyof -some of; tho minor /: /.literary : ;inisdemeanours7-to/ inquire "why*.,-.QU-! • ;■;; / 'thprV/.bocome i;.--• some useful trade.> .• .. .*• •. / ,-; . . . ;Hc : classified tho , motives .which' .'drive ' people; to'authorship as four—vanity or ebn,V *'ceit; greed; tho fun. : of tho'thini;;• arid, hsivr . ir.g a messag'e .to'.deliyer. .As.to-the .first, .... Vho Vaskrf; miriistera ;!to ;variity -liko;the , . sight of 'one's first printed ; productio-n, > and i. ho gavo as an illustration .of a book writ- ; / - ten entirely, for'j'inbtiyesvof ;:yanity, ;a ; "Lifo ;V "of- Qu«eri; ; ;Elizab6tb j"v which■ ho wrote him-' •'. . self shine/;;-:'. Living • authors j'V. '.whon'i;hoi'had'asked ; whether;,they. had,'.ever ' \ ' rritten anything, purely •/ for • vanity . all ' 'JV mswered)himvii,'a.;pained' .and, haughty nega-iye,;;'!but-ifbp;myself,^";';h«;'. said,,..Vl glory; ' ;V 'Vinstiince-of 'schoolfl 1 of 1 literature - V«rhosb;',main4'prini; : ,;wns {■ coriceit. 'iwas ;.;the =• ;the time.'.of ;Eouis; XV, and .- ranity . was . found to; bp thp. ; mam motive ii 'aJlschools ; where; the: 'form -is 'preferred ti the substarice, 5 among which Judge Parry >', cesses the. . ttb ■ saying - exception of Goldsmith.; >'■- •. 'Shakespeare. was among tho " first and , griatest of' the .authors''whoso ' motive was r.. grcjcl.-;.- *Jl: certainly '•..cannot ..imagine.;, any; 'onet writing:', a; pluy from; any other niotivo ;; ; from i'i lower .motive.; Shake: ■;: spea'-e's.', main ' desire in life, if wo airs) to :. .;trdst his . biographers," was;to;becomo a ;land- ;-. ■ holdo'i vand.- a "What an i'; ideal, thairman of . a 'licensing Iwncli'.ho .would k-'J ll '' o ;made. Would • ■ Mistress. ; Quickly's! }.: beoti-,renewed?:■; I doubt-'its. He ;• .-wiote-plays fof .tho.'.contomporary.-bbx offico, I' JtbVnialto. money ;■ out. of ,therii. > Shakespcaro f. ; W:'nb (vanity : pr..;c6hccit;: No-' doubt .ho /- for.'tho fnii l of the 'thing,; as all writers /' are > v<) rib their/salt :mnst :do, but that h ,-;-'; he .vrote; his ; plays ' for, greed '.the i ; .-yfow fyecordsof - his ,-lifo ' lwo possess /i ■ beyond; , reasonable donl/;.'" tho word i. . "grefd" not in any old-fashioned dictionary '|j..meanttg,: hnt.'.; inaii';,; hprto-date. '.Glarion- ', V:;:Bricialisfc sense. 'greed;of tie authp'same.'Way': as; the .' .Bociali^.:, sppke!. of .jthe of -the; era-, -i ;,of your-'.brains , for the , .-..'purpose;of niuttirfg.'monoy .in your' pocket. ;.; - ".The orilf .Shakespearean: ' play -:of : modern ;,. 'WVat- thc;.Butler Saw, written,. - I nm ash>ni«l to ysay,' from/very similar '^.■;-■.--:.lnbtiv'es;-.^'■l■..happen• that -this is a plav afkr Shakespeare's own heart." Ho ; described a- dream in .;!'which.; Milton ;a'nd Oliver Croray/ell' hoth ca-mc .up to mo and . : said they hoped 'the Butler', would not liavo • a long run;- -Wordsworth, I!.;remember, - wanted £6;-know..- Butler really did eeo; Lamb,'.witilring; at mo, 'tooßi him .away ; to tell him: and then Shakespeare camo up ..';.- :.' ' -.. : 'r !: .V : r \ .. . '": ■ : ' , , .■■ , . ■. ..

and patted mo on tlio shoulder ond said, 'If is ; ell' right, my youni? friend,- I could not havo done, it' better myself.' V "All t-ho-best writing in t.ue world, short'' of,the 'highest-and ftiost sacred .work, is done for' thevfun .of ;thb thing..; Tho works of Sout'i'.ey arc forgotten,'but tho tale; of 'Tho -Three' Bears,'- which he wrote for ;the fun of the thing,; will go on; living so long as thoro aro children to tell it to. .Southey has departcd into the '.shadows; if you take Words-worth-offtlio young lady's shelf you have to blow .-.the dust 'off the volume; Coleridgo' is only to bo found in school poetry books compiled by economic editors of non-copyright poems; while Lamb has more friends and lovers to-day - than-lie: had,- in big lifetime.; He wrote for the fun of the thing, and the fun remains. for us to-day, bounteous, bub-: ';bling over: with; humour and delight. Muoh of tho literature of to-day is, as Touchstone says, ■damhed,\like an ill-roast-od egg, all on: one side.' Tno fashion of tho. hour _ is. toi despise tlie heart. ■'.Writers must write for; ithe brains 'and intellect of ,tho learned, -mean-, ing by'lhoi'leat-ned'those who have passed, «utlicieirt , examinations to render it unnecosrsary ithait'they should ever think for themselves again. I,should liko-to send many of. our novehsts and playwrights of to-day for ,*a;-'.seaisi>n at.'Horroga'te.':.' .A course, of tonounce 'dosos of strong sulphur would diminish the rifek for them of .a. far longer course of ; far stronger sulphur in tho hereafter." - If,: tus . some : people - thought, authorship was a habit: likb drink 'or. gambling; "libraries wero-goingi to .have-r .rough time in tho future.' ..There'might,be.' in !time to como a ■local Efcensing authority,for literature. "Wo have siSen : a Yorkshire town counoil turning Fieldinls's works out to their otfernal dis;grac<3.'..; - Already,.the. town .council .dccides ;what - IHnd, of; plays .we may . give and . what : kind off dances* aro good.' It' absolutely set: ties for us • what wo -are to. drink ; between tho acts, 'putting'-the whisky .on one, side of tlio street-and. tho soda, on the. other. Wlien tho flown councils wako up to tho fact/that • from the respectable-' employer's : point of • . view the author % habit is as dangerous - a habit,.as.the drink jbabft,- the.!licensing system .1 will certainly • be.:, oxt-ended -to authors. If tilings progress and: authors are mado to take out licenses/1 shall run a serious risk of finding my license, endorsed. 1 ' ' 'V'.Tllte - real '.the . question, "Why. be; an. ,author.?!';was,.the message of life given ,by.;'gi«at.. autJiqrs. , "The. writings'of a .man like St. Paul, tho author of tho Book of Job) Augustine, of - Carlylo and Dickons m. .our. 6wn:.day4-all seem-to. me to-havo been wrisßen in reply , to some ,'such command , (is was given to St. Paul himself, to whom it was said, "Ariso, and go into the city, and it:shiali;be told;of thee that thou Bhalt do." {The ; inesbage to deliver is tho ,happy:messenger..boyTsent on.- his errand by the great Postmaster, "Whoso message he dolliyars.; '■ 'x- V ''V ,-.W I'Mddorn 'writers,, who soem deliberately to. :try';td.' make','uT'less happy than wo w i ere beforb, should remember that' the author of thfe Book of; Job went;solid for; t-lie happy enldhig. No doiibt . the dramatic critic of the. 'Babylon Guardian' went for Jiim and callod him. a low-down, despicablo person. . . : If you wnte for mankind you must not dc:spiso mankind.-: You must, writs .for them:in tnß;spirit 'of. 'respfeot find alfection—even respecting .'all : their little,.weaknesses, and one of the weaknesses of mankind," if "it be a 'weak.'n'ess, (is the 'cMldliko. love of a story. wliich begins- 'once-'upoh.:'a -'t-ime' and ends with 'everyone living happy: ever after'.; "