Mark Twain's Speeches. (Harper and Brothers. 7s. 6d. net.)— We
have had occasion more than once to remark of some pub- lished volume that it suffered from the fact that it put together as if for connected reading a number of things that were originally disconnected, and, it may be said, meant to remain so. This particular book suffers from another cause. Its contents are things to hear, not to read. It is impossible to estimate how much they have lost in losing the vivida vox which the fortunate audiences heard along with them. It seems from what Mr. W. D. Howells says in his introduction that Mr. Clemens most carefully studied everything. Certainly there never was a more singular instance of the maxima ars celare artem. Nothing could have a more spontaneous look than these speeches, one hundred and four in number. We shall not attempt to criticise them, or even to supply samples ; they do not lend themselves to either treatment. We would advise our readers to take what is here given them "in sips." It is one of the many drawbacks of a reviewer's occupation that he must lose much that is pleasant by not being able to do this himself.
Previous page
