LIBER'S NOTE BOOK

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 241, 5 July 1919, Page 11

LIBER'S NOTE BOOK

Stray Leaves... What'.has long'been a'.decided want, a reasonably-priced selection from the best of Swinburne's, poems, is shortly, to be met by., lleinemanns. The selectors are to be.Edmund Goss.e and T. .1. Wise.. The only existing.volumo of selections/from Swinburne is that published iu m 7, Hie sslecror being, (he late WaltsDuntoii, who selected those, poems which .appealed to liis,..personal taste, but omitted several which, have been recognised as amongst ..(ho poet's masterpieces. Supplies of the '■Hoii. .1.1, \YY Russell's book,'"The New .Heaven," have, 1 hear, now reached' New Zealand, and will shortly be available at. the local bookshops. A review, of ,Jl,r, Russell's book will appear on this page next. Saturday.

A kindly correspondent, .writing from luhibollon, corrects an .error which crept into my last -.week's . review of Air. Wholhani's story, "Fruit of Hie Earth." I referred to, an earlier novel by the sanio writer as "Starvec.row .Farm." Aly correspondent points out. that Stanley Weyman was.the author.of the story in riuestion.. I should have.wrilten "Starvencre Farm." ...

Alec Waugli, who wrote I hat now famous story of English public, school life, "Tho Loom of Youth," has written a (look, "The Prisoners of Alninz," in which ho describes, his experiences ns a prisoner of war. Mr. Waugli draws quito aiPamiable picture of. the Hun gaolers., but a writer-in "The World" declares that directly ho arrived at--the-prison camp' the young author was recognised as having, a certain influence' in. Ihe English journalistic nud-literary world, and that his favourable 'treatment was a part of the German propaganda.- .Mr. Wntigh has,■ I 'rciitl, a-now novel ready for publication, which, so, the inevitable pull' preliminary of Ihe declares! will create an even' greater sensation than did 1 "The Loom of Youth."

Grant Richards, has published a cheaper edition of that remarkable book, "The Ragged-Trousered. Philanthropisl," but admits the new edition has been cut down n little. Mr. Richards promises that he hopes some day to print in two or thrco volumes the 'whole of RobeVt Tre.sseil'.s story ns it appears in I lie original manuscript. . ,-' The "Kdwiu Drood" controversy seems never oiiding. Dickcnsinns should note that in tho "Times" Literarv Supplement of April ,'), Professor W. D'Arcy [Thompson has a most interesting letter in which he contends thai; Datchery. (in whom Sir Wiliani -Robertson Nieol and others have thought they identified a disguised Helena' Landless).' was in reality none.other 'Ilinn Air. Grewgious. Personally I am not convinced, but Professor Thompson's theory is very, interesting. Sir Arthur Pinefo, I notice, thinks tlio' mysterious defective was Barard, Grewgious'u deck.

No wonder all the rare books and liternry items which crop up for sale go nowadays to New York. American coltors apparently havo "money to i urn," far beyond the financial capacity of English bibliophile's. For instance, just take a Stevenson'item sold in March last at the Anderson Galleries, Now York for 2GOO .'dollars Ua'2o). ' This was the price realised hy tiro numbers, «"os. 1 and 2 of a manuscript magazine, "The Sunbeam," edited by K.L.S. .when he was a student at M.r. Tomlinson's day school, Edinburgh. : It.,contained coloured and uncoloured illustrations, also instalments of a serial story, "The Banker's Ward," which is claimed.to be from Stevenson's pen. "The Sunbeam," Ihe sub-title of Which is 'The Illustrated Miscellany of Fact, Fiction, and Fancy," and'which consists of'24'pages per part, was, it is said, .passed from hand to hand at /a charge of a penny a night, of which "the proceeds-are to be devoted- to the-Seolcote Orphanage."

American collectors lire also giving high .prices for any original drawings by Aubrey Beardsloy,. that, eccentric young artist, a veritable 'master of line, whom "Punch" called Mr. Weirdslv Dliubslov. •'Forty-three small drawings bv Beardsley recently realised JJI4OO n't a NewYork sale. They 'were originally the properly of a Mr.. Evans, a bookseller in Cheapside, London., who gave Beanlslev, I hen -a mere youth, 'an introduction to Mr. J. M. Dent,, tho'publisher,-who entrusted him with, the work of vllustrating.. a ' new edition, r.f "Le . Morte d'Arlhur." The story goes that Bnrne •Tones gave • Beardsley some vahmblo hints." Another '.London 'lniblisher. John Lime, who was the publisher of "The Yellow Bool;," in'"which so much of Beardsley's earlier work i.ppeared, had a splendid collection of Beardsley's drawings; .but. unfortunately Ihev were all VM.roycd. by a fife in .the' English Vn. vilion at the Leipzig Exhibition, in 1911, Amongst the most sensational naval fonts of (he war was the'raid on. Zeobriigge and Ostond last year. Those, and there must: bo, manv. who'desire to nossesa a. detailed and thoroughly reliable history of the raid! or rather Hiese raids, should note the fart that o "volume containing all Hie British official disimlehes concerning the raids is vn be nublisliod bv the Oxford University Pre'?s. under the editorship of Professor Snnford Terry. • Tho' history of Hie Guards Division during the war is being ■'written by Colonel Murray. C.H.. and will be published by Dodder and Slonghton in the autumn.

'. I. am glad to see that someone has been saying n good word (in the "Times Lifer, nry 'Supplement") for Blaekmore's stories of rural life.' Most readers know Blackmore only by' the one book, "Lornn Doolie," but "The'-Times" writer con. tends that others; of Blackmore's less known novols aro- equally deserving of 'attention'.'' My"'own ' 'favourites nre

"Spriiigliaven," a story of the Napoleonio wars, "Crhdock'- Nowell," and "Cri])ps the Carrier." Blaekniore wrt's a fine clasical scholar, and'was father too fond of interlarding his "stories' with classical quota■lions. He was, too, a great gardener, who for a time specialised in strnwberry--gymving for the 'London market. ."Liber" remembers having read somewhere Unit the novelist used to complain, in a. seiuijoVular'vein, that he had to write a new story every year'to nleet the loss on. his gardening enterprises.'. " .

In a recenCy-publisliedlinok, "The New Easterti Empire,"' Mr. Ralph Butler points out. thai the.Russian village com.inline is not generally an East European institution. To the Finnish or Lettish or Polish peasant if makes, 'ays .Mr. Butler, seanl: appeal, and even the Ukrainian peasants arc out of sympathy with it. The." Russian' temperament is, he says, profoundly--Socialistic; bill; any attempt to apply the principles (if the' llolshevik agrariiin- revolution to East. European social conditions generally at once, says Mr. Butler, "rallies'to the side of reaction every class or individual which own* any property at all." He is, I notice, .very Mcvero upon "Polish 'Imperialism." which is, he says, "blossoming again like Ihe aloe alter a hundred barren years." Europo needs a strong Poland, but Ihe question is, Will the Poles learn moderation? _'".!;.■"

Joseph Conrad, to whose latest novel, 'The -Arrows of Gold," t alluded a week or two ago, has, I rotice, written yet another new story, this time appearing as a serial in "Land and Water," Ihe ' English weekly which has enjoyed such u big circulation during the war period,' Sir. Hilairo lielloc's weekly article on Ihe progress of the various campaigns being tho special attraction. It wi.l, of course, be some liino before tin- serin] slury ;.p-----pears in volume form, but wo.-ought to nave "Ariows of Gold" out here, very soon. Copies of Lord Jellicoe's liooit on "The Grand I'leet,. 1111-l-lll." have just reached Zealand. but the [.rice : .'ik. lid. ni London!! will, I fear, prevent the book being widely read. As soon atho price of paper becoiues muro reasonable it is to be hoped that Kuglish publication!!, .will resume flic old custom of issuing colonial-edition* .of Mich linoks i,.s that of Lord •Jeliicoc. Colonel John Huchan. whose "History of the War," published by Nelsons, has been such a big success, lias a itvw "Dick Haiiniiy" romance out. with llodder•• and Slough'lon. The title is ".Mr. Sieadl'ast," ond the slow continues Ihe adventures of "Greennuiiitie" and "The Thirty-Nine Sleps."