'Piovaes my Mooene Lirexarure"* By TH. Prisleys" Gane, a. 085 write of living authors, expecially with any sore of preten-Sion. to. judlelous' impartiality, is fotoriouely'a thkdish business; and Mr Priestley would be a. much abler man even than he is had he entirely succeeded in his tank. iP'remtrkable how often he Ive like to think may be posterity's roaches success, and gives us what
opinion on his authors-—if posterity thinks about them, Por there's real rub. Each- age' jealously: Hearves and gilds its own {gals and prepares shrines for them; and its attitude to past idolatries is too
Mr. Priestley is something bolder than the young men who vie with tone another in. peeling off the tattered gilt from what they: assure was the very inferior gingeybread of Victoria. He is willing to talk about contemporaries, and. Fisks the Jaugh, and. merits the praise, of the age to come. A lucky chance has led him to put among, hhis nine authors. six whose future work—may it be much from those living!—is not likely to change critical opinion on their literary position. We shall, alas! have. no more of Maurice Hewlett—he might have surprised us with fresh beauties and adventures into the new countries. We hope to have much more from Mr. Saintsbury, from Mr. Santayana, from Mr. W. W. Jacobs; but we cannot believe that their future work will display qualities radically' different from their-old, Prom Mz. A. E, House man we long for more, but hardly expect it; and-his manner is as Hittle likely' to alter as did Landor's, Nor do we fancy that Mr. Arnold Bennett is likely to turn from the writing of novels and the compli tion of tabloid philosophies to the production of poetry. Mr. Pries-fley's other three subjects are still incalculable. "Wer know and admire what Mr. Robert Lynd, Mr. J.C, Squire, and Mr. do la Ma have accomplished, but there is no saying how they may develop.
The best of Mr. Pricstley's papers are certainly those or Mr. Bennett and on Mr. Hewlett, rather over-rates the former. We are convinced that it is only English non-acquaintance with French fiction which makes Mr. Arnold Bennett, the serious novelist, seem an important author, He has great power of observation; but has really nothing to say in "Rice) man Steps" or the "Clayhanger' series, After Maupassant or Zola he is vacant. His light works ure another matter; and we are glad to see Mr. Priestley's praise of Denry, with whom we would mention in gratitude the Helen of the hand, the Helen who made the kidney omelette in a book far more likely to live than Mr. Bermett's competent, industrious "followings of George Gissing..In the essay on Hewlett we are thoroughly glad to find the praise, pitched not w whit too high, of the magnificent "Song the Plow." The neglect of that book is partly due to its appearance im the middle of the war, when we were too occupied with fighting: to wonder for what we fought. Tt is easily the most important long, poem in English since The Ring and the Book;" and its wide vision its passionate wisdom and keen shrewdness make it an exceptional thing in our literature. Mr. Priestley pusaises, too, Howlett's essays; but he seems to have missed thet lovelicet of his earlier books, 8 book strangely neglected by a public which reads Algernon Blackwood eagerly, the very typical Lore of Proserpine."
Of the other essays we Like best sho|those on Mr.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.