north america-2-第99章

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


as　been　in　my　power　I　have　done　so；　and　I　have　always　found　books　in　such　houses　as　I　have　entered。　The　amount　or　printed　matter　which　is　poured　forth　in　streams　from　the　printing　presses　of　the　great　American　publishers　is；　however；　a　better　proof　of　the　truth　of　what　I　say　than　anything　that　I　can　have　seen　myself。　But　of　what　class　are　the　books　that　are　so　read？　　There　are　many　who　think　that　reading　in　itself　is　not　good　unless　the　matter　read　is　excellent。　　I　do　not　myself　quite　agree　with　this；　thinking　that　almost　any　reading　is　better　than　none；　but　I　will　of　course　admit　that　good　matter　is　better　than　bad　matter。　　The　bulk　of　the　literature　consumed　in　the　States　is　no　doubt　composed　of　novelsas　it　is　also；　now…a…days；　in　this　country。　　Whether　or　no　an　unlimited　supply　of　novels　for　young　people　is　or　is　not　advantageous；　I　will　not　here　pretend　to　say。　　The　general　opinion　with　ourselves；　I　take　it；　is　that　novels　are　bad　reading　if　they　be　bad　of　their　kind。　Novels　that　are　not　bad　are　now…a…days　accepted　generally　as　indispensable　to　our　households。　　Whatever　may　be　the　weakness　of　the　American　literary　taste　in　this　respect；　it　is　I　think　a　weakness　which　we　share。　　There　are　more　novel　readers　among　them　than　with　us；　but　only　I　think　in　the　proportion　that　there　are　more　readers。　I　have　no　hesitation　in　saying　that　works　by　English　authors　are　more　popular　in　the　States　than　those　written　by　Americans；　and；　among　English　authors　of　the　present　day；　readers　by　no　means　confine　themselves　to　the　novelists。　　The　English　names　of　whom　I　heard　most　during　my　sojourn　in　the　States　were　perhaps　those　of　Dickens；　Tennyson；　Buckle；　Tom　Hughes；　Martin　Tupper；　and　Thackeray。　As　the　owners　of　all　these　names　are　still　living；　I　am　not　going　to　take　upon　myself　the　delicate　task　of　criticising　the　American　taste。　　I　may　not　perhaps　coincide　with　them　in　every　respect。　　But　if　I　be　right　as　to　the　names　which　I　have　given；　such　a　selection　shows　that　they　do　get　beyond　novels。　　I　have　little　doubt　but　that　many　more　copies　of　Dickens's　novels　have　been　sold；　during　the　last　three　years；　than　of　the　works　either　of　Tennyson　or　Buckle；　but　such　also　has　been　the　case　in　England。　　It　will　probably　be　admitted　that　one　copy　of　the　〃Civilization〃　should　be　held　as　being　equal　to　five　and　twenty　of　〃Nicholas　Nickleby；〃　and　that　a　single　〃In　Memoriam〃　may　fairly　weigh　down　half　a　dozen　〃Pickwicks。〃　　Men　and　women　after　their　day's　work　are　not　always　up　to　the　〃Civilization。〃　　As　a　rule；　they　are　generally　up　to　〃Proverbial　Philosophy；〃　and　this；　perhaps；　may　have　had　something　to　do　with　the　great　popularity　of　that　very　popular　work。　I　would　not　have　it　supposed　that　American　readers　despise　their　own　authors。　　The　Americans　are　very　proud　of　having　a　literature　of　their　own；　and　among　the　literary　names　which　they　honor；　there　are　none　more　honorable　than　those　of　Cooper　and　Irving。　　They　like　to　know　that　their　modern　historians　are　acknowledged　as　great　authors；　and　as　regards　their　own　poets；　will　sometimes　demand　your　admiration　for　strains　with　which　you　hardly　find　yourself　to　be　familiar。　　But　English　books　are；　I　think；　the　better　loved：　even　the　English　books　of　the　present　day。　　And　even　beyond　thiswith　those　who　choose　to　indulge　in　the　luxuries　of　literaturebooks　printed　in　England　are　more　popular　than　those　which　are　printed　in　their　own　country；　and　yet　the　manner　in　which　the　American　publishers　put　out　their　work　is　very　good。　　The　book　sold　there　at　a　dollar；　or　a　dollar　and　a　quarter；　quite　equals　our　ordinary　five　shilling　volume。　　Nevertheless；　English　books　are　preferred；　almost　as　strongly　as　are　French　bonnets。　　Of　books　absolutely　printed　and　produced　in　England；　the　supply　in　the　States　is　of　course　small。　They　must　necessarily　be　costly；　and　as　regards　new　books；　are　always　subjected　to　the　rivalry　of　a　cheaper　American　copy。　　But　of　the　reprinted　works　of　English　authors　the　supply　is　unlimited；　and　the　sale　very　great。　　Almost　everything　is　reprinted：　certainly　everything　which　can　be　said　to　attain　any　home　popularity。　　I　do　not　know　how　far　English　authors　may　be　aware　of　the　fact；　but　it　is　undoubtedly　a　fact　that　their　influence　as　authors　is　greater　on　the　other　side　of　the　Atlantic　than　on　this　one。　　It　is　there　that　they　have　their　most　numerous　school　of　pupils。　　It　is　there　that　they　are　recognized　as　teachers　by　hundreds　of　thousands。　　It　is　of　these　thirty　millions　that　they　should　think；　at　any　rate　in　part；　when　they　discuss　within　their　own　hearts　that　question　which　all　authors　do　discuss；　whether　that　which　they　write　shall　in　itself　be　good　or　bad；　be　true　or　false。　　A　writer　in　England　may　not；　perhaps；　think　very　much　of　this　with　reference　to　some　trifle　of　which　his　English　publisher　proposes　to　sell　some　seven　or　eight　hundred　copies。　　But　he　begins　to　feel　that　he　should　have　thought　of　it　when　he　learns　that　twenty　or　thirty　thousand　copies　of　the　same　have　been　scattered　through　the　length　and　breadth　of　the　United　States。　　The　English　author　should　feel　that　he　writes　for　the　widest　circle　of　readers　ever　yet　obtained　by　the　literature　of　any　country。　　He　provides　not　only　for　his　own　country　and　for　the　States；　but　for　the　readers　who　are　rising　by　millions　in　the　British　colonies。　Canada　is　supplied　chiefly　from　the　presses　of　Boston；　New　York；　and　Philadelphia；　but　she　is　supplied　with　the　works　of　the　mother　country。　　India；　as　I　take　it；　gets　all　her　books　direct　from　London；　as　do　the　West　Indies。　　Whether　or　no　the　Australian　colonies　have　as　yet　learned　to　reprint　our　books　I　have　never　learned；　but　I　presume　that　they　cannot　do　so　as　cheaply　as　they　can　import　them。　　London　with　us；　and　the　three　cities　which　I　have　named　on　the　other　side　of　the　Atlantic；　are　the　places　at　which　this　literature　is　manufactured；　but　the　demand　in　the　Western　hemisphere　is　becoming　more　brisk　than　that　which　the　Old　World　creates。　　There　are；　I　have　no　doubt；　more　books　printed　in　London　than　in　all　America　put　together。　　A　greater　extent　of　letter…press　is　put　up　in　London　than　in　the　three　publishing　cities　of　the　States；　but　the　number　of　copies　issued　by　the　American　publishers　is　so　much　greater　than　those　which　ours　put　forth　that　the　greater　bulk　of　literature　is　with　them。　　If　this　be　so；　the　demand　with　them　is　of　course　greater　than　it　is　with　us。　I　have　spoken　here　of　the　privilege　which　an　English　author　enjoys　by　reason　of　the　ever…widening　circle　of　readers　to　whom　he　writes。　I　should　have　said　the　writers　of　English　literature；　seeing　that　the　privilege　is　of　course　shared　by　the　American　writer。　　I　profess　my　belief　that　in　the　States　an　English　author　has　an　advantage　over　one　of　that　country　merely　in　the　fact　of　his　being　English；　as　a　French　milliner　has　undoubtedly　an　advantage　in　her　nationality；　let　her　merits　or　demerits　as　a　milliner　be　what　they　may。　　I　think　that　English　books　are　better　liked　because　they　are　English。　　But　I　do　not　know　that　there　is　any　feeling　with　us　either　for　or　against　an　author　because　he　is　American。　　I　believe　that　Longfellow　stands　in　our　judgment　exactly　where　he　would　have　stood　had　he　been　a　tutor　at　a　college　in　Oxford　instead