CHARLES LAMB'S " ROSAMUND GRAY."
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR...I
SIR,—Though fully alive on general principles to the foolish- ness of complaining of criticism, I Lope you will allow me a few lines to correct, what practically amounts to a mis- representation, of course quite unintentional, in your notice in the Spectator of October 11th of my" York Library," since this involves the serious charge of indifference to the morals of children. The words of your review are :—" We cannot but think that the publication of 'Rosamund Gray' is a grave mistake in the matter of taste. Does the publisher suppose that fathers and mothers are going to put this book into the bands of their children ? We would warn them, in case they do not know what it contains, that they should do nothing of the kind." The accusation here conveyed is unmistakable, and if the assumption it applies were correct, fully justified. But the facts do not bear it out. This series was never intended for children, has never been so advertised or announced, and in every particular bears evidence, on the face of it, of an entirely different ambition. The price, the size, the format, the selections issued and announced, would be entirely unsuitable for such a purpose. Your reviewer, I presume, would hardly contend, on the one hand, that "Rosamund Gray" is harmful to adult readers, or on the other, that any publication is "in bad taste" which cannot be recommended as a gift to children. How many books in the list of announcements for this, or any other, autumn would stand against such a test P—I am, Sir, R. BEIMLEY JOHNSON.
[We cannot agree that the price, size, and format of the book are such as to suggest that the books are not intended for children. On the contrary, they suggested to the reviewer's mind that they were so intended; but we of course fully accept Mr. Brimley Johnson's disclaimer on this point, and regret our misapprehension.—En. Spectator.]
Previous page
