LITERATURE, AMERICAN, IN 1881. 



LITERATURE, BRITISH, IN 1881. 493 



(Boston, J. Bradley & Co.), deserve the highest 

 praise. In the same connection may be named 

 J. R. Gardiner's "English History for Young 

 Folks, B. o. 55-A. D. 1880," in a revised edition 

 for American students (New York, Holt). J. 

 Otis's "Toby Tyler, or Ten Weeks with a 

 Circus," and W. L. Alden's " Cruise of the 

 Ghost" (New York, Harper & Brothers), are 

 first-rate stories for boys. Miss L. E. Guern- 

 sey's "The Foster Sisters, 'or Lucy Corbet's 

 Chronicle " (New York, Whittaker), is one of 

 the best stories of the year for both boys and 

 girls. 



The literature of Fiction, as a comparison 

 with last year shows, is as attractive as ever, 

 and the supply keeps pace with the demand. 

 American authors, too, hold their own in this 

 department, and divide the honors with Eng- 

 lish and Continental writers. As productions 

 of this kind number by the hundreds, it is 

 of course impossible to do more than give a 

 glance at a few of the noteworthy novels and 

 stories of 1881. Henry James's " The Portrait 

 of a Lady " (Boston, Houghton, Mifflin & Co.) 

 is much admired, and also much criticised. 

 Mrs. F. H. Burnett's "A Fair Barbarian " well 

 sustains the writer's reputation (Boston, Os- 

 good & Co.). The same publishers issue Miss 

 R. T. Cooke's " Somebody's Neighbors," and 

 "W. D. Howells's "Dr. Breen's Practice," and 

 " A Fearful Responsibility," each very effect- 

 ive in its way. Miss L. M. Alcott's " Little 

 "Women " series (Boston, Roberts Brothers), 

 comprising eight volumes, appears in a new 

 edition, and maintains its high place in Ameri- 

 can fiction. Rev. W. Baker's " Blessed Saint 

 Certainty " (Boston, Roberts Brothers) graph- 

 ically presents scenes and characters from fron- 

 tier life ; and "Cape Cod Folks," by Miss Mc- 

 Lean (Boston, Williams & Co.), is really unique, 

 and in some respects the best novel of the 

 year. "The Bloody Chasm," by J. W. De 

 Forest, and "Wild Work, the Story of the 

 Red River Tragedy," by Mary E. Bryan (New 

 York, D. Appleton & Co.), are pictures of 

 American manners and events, and are full of 

 exciting interest. E. P. Roe's "Without a 

 Home" (New York, Dodd, Mead & Co.) is, 

 like all his stories, written with a distinct pur- 

 pose, and points out the terribly pernicious ef- 

 fects of the opium-habit. 



A large number of novels by English writers 

 are, as usual, republished in the United States. 

 George MacDonald, a writer of rare power as 

 an analyst and portrayer of character, furnishes 

 this year "Mary Marston" (D. Appleton & 

 Co.) and "Warlock O'Glenwarlock " (New 

 York, Harper & Brothers). From the latter 

 house also are sent out W. Besant and J. Rice's 

 "Chaplain of the Fleet," a curiously interest- 

 ing story of the condition of tnatters a hundred 

 years ago in a well-known district in London ; 

 W. Black's "Sunrise" and "The Beautiful 

 Wretch," both sustaining his well-earned rep- 

 utation as a novelist; and R. D. Blackmore's 

 " Christowell," a story of unusual power. W. 



W. Mallock writes "A Romance of the Nine- 

 teenth Century," and in it presents a strik- 

 ingly realistic picture of existing social condi- 

 tions ; Mrs. K. S. Macquoid gives a pleasing 

 story in " Esau Runswick " ; and D. 0. Mur- 

 ray presents us with a somewhat singular pro- 

 duction entitled "Joseph's Coat" (these pub- 

 lished by Putnam's Sons). 



Translations of works of fiction are very 

 numerous. Victor Cherbuliez's " Saints and 

 Sinners " (Noirs et Rouges) is a capital speci- 

 men of French life and manners (New York, 

 D. Appleton & Co.) ; so also is Andr6 Theu- 

 riet's "All Alone"; F. Spielbagen's "Lady 

 Clara Vere de Vere " well represents the pop- 

 ular German style of novel (same publishers). 

 The "Spanish Fairy Tales" of Fernan Cabal- 

 lero are presented in a capital rendering into 

 English by J. H. Ingram ; Mrs. A. L. Wister 

 translates from the German " The Eichoffs " 

 of Von Reichenbach, and " Severa," a novel 

 of E. Hartner's (Philadelphia, Lippincott & 

 Co.). H. H. Boyesen's " Queen Titania " and 

 " Tales of Two Hemispheres " (New York, 

 Scribner's Sons) are stories of real merit. 

 Professor R. B. Anderson has translated, with 

 the approval of the author, Bjornson's delight- 

 ful " Synnove Solbakken," " Arne," and " A 

 Happy Boy " (Boston, Houghton, Mifflin & 

 Co.). The same scholar gives us, from the 

 Icelandic, the Viking Tales of the North, i. e., 

 "The Sagas of Thorstein, Viking's Son, and 

 Fridthjof the Bold " (Chicago, S. C. Griggs & 

 Co.). George Ebers's " Uarda, a Romance of 

 Ancient Egypt," is a singularly striking pro- 

 duction, carrying one back into hoar antiquity. 

 Jules Verne, one of the most industrious and 

 useful writers of our day, gives us " The Steam 

 House, Part I, The Demon of Cawnpore," 

 and "Part II, Tigers and Traitors" (New 

 York, Scribuer's Sons). From the French also 

 comes " A Nihilist Princess," by M. L. Gagneur 

 (Chicago, Jansen, McClurg & Co.), and A. de 

 Lamartine's " Graziella, a Story of Italian 

 Love," new edition (same publishers). 



LITERATURE, BRITISH, IN 1881. Lit- 

 erature in Great Britain, in 1881, does not dis- 

 play equal activity with American literature 

 during the same period. As we have shown 

 on a previous page, literature in the United 

 States is steadily increasing in almost every 

 department of knowledge, there being about 

 one thousand more books noted in " The Pub- 

 lishers' Weekly " for 1881 than for the year 

 1880. In England, however, according to 

 "The London Publishers' Circular," there is a 

 marked falling off, seeing that three hundred 

 volumes less are recorded as being published 

 in 1881 than in 1880. This decrease is attrib- 

 uted mainly to the great development of the 

 periodical press, and the immense increase in 

 the number and variety of daily, weekly, and 

 monthly papers and magazines. No doubt, 

 there is force in this statement, and we give it 

 for what it is worth. At the same time it is 

 worthy of note that this very cause, operating 



