Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 142, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 June 1910 — NEWS OF RECENT BOOKS [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

NEWS OF RECENT BOOKS

lan Hay, who comes before the American public for the first tinie with his new novel, “The Right Stuff,” Is a young Scotch writer. “The Right Stuff” has been compared with Barrie’s “WheiTa Man’s Single.” It deals with London life of to-day. Maurice Hewlett has lately been appearing as the bellwether of Thomas Hardy’s admirers. Mr. Hewlett belongs to a family that has lived In Somerset and Dorset for generations. The members of the family were always Whigs and Puritans. Mr. Hewlett has some French Huguenot blood. His early reading wag Mallory, the Bible, “Don Quixote” In English, Sir Thomas Browne. William Allen White recently entertained Governor Stubbs of Kansas, Mrs. J. Pierpont Morgan and Miss Morgan at his home in Emporia. In an Interview the next day the Governor characterized Miss Morgan as an “insurgent.” This is perhaps significant In view of the fact that Victor Murdock, who, It Is believed, is the original of one of the characters In Mr. White’s novel, "A Certain Rich Man,” Is an Intimate friend of Mr. White's —and a leading insurgent H. G. Wells tells a story of a \ business man next to whom he once sat at a public dinner. The conversation had turned upon one of bls own books, and Mr. Wells had said something to the effect that “were there no self-seekers

the world would bo a Utopia.” This neighbor promptly observed: “I malntalp that all water used for drinking and culinary purposes should be boiled at-least an hour.” “You are a physician, I presume?” suggested the novelist "No, sir,” was the reply, "I am In the coal line.” It is well known that at one stage of his career Mark Twain was In serious financial difficulties. He was interested in the publishing firm of C. L. Webster & Co., and when that company failed he insisted upon undertaking their liabilities. The figures are now being recalled. "The assets of the company were realized upon as far as possible, whicn enabled the firm to pay about 40 cents on the dollar. As the entire debts amounted to 4100,000, this left >60,000 of unpaid and unsecured debts. When this became known Mark Twain announced that he would assume personally the responsibility of paying the >60,000. His phrase was: ‘l’ll pay this If I live.’ No one believed him, but he immediately went cn a lecture tour, wrote ‘Following the Equator,’ and kept at work until he had paid every dollar of the Webster indebtedness.”