Mededelingen van het Cyriel Buysse Genootschap 11

[p. 125]

22

July 5, 1890

...

In Flemish literature the event of the year is the appearance of a posthumous novel by Henri Conscience. Until last January it was generally believed that this great popular writer, who died in 1883, had not left any manuscript behind him; but in January a story of village life came out, ‘De Duivel uit het Slangenbosch’ (‘The Devil of the Snakewood’), which apparently was begun by Conscience and finished by his only daughter Madame Antheunis. It is a pleasing work, but it will add nothing to the reputation of the favourite novelist of Flanders.

In the domain of poetry the most interesting productions are those of two young ladies: ‘Rouw-Violen’ (‘Mourning Violets’), by Mlle. Helena Swarth, and ‘Gedichten’ (‘Poems’), by Mlle. Hilda Ram. These two writers have already published several volumes of verse, and acquired a well-deserved literary celebrity; but their talent seems to be at a standstill for the time being. Amongst a number of dramatic works we may notice an historical drama called ‘De Dood van Karel de Goede’ (‘The Death of Earl Charles the Good,’ 1127), by M. Julius Plancquaert, who obtained the triennial prize for dramatic literature awarded by the government. This play shows inexperience and is a declamatory work, yet it is not wholly devoid of merit.

As regards history, we must mention the fifth volume of the exhaustive description of the streets and buildings of the city of Ghent, ‘Gent van den Vroegsten Tijd tot Heden’, by M. Frans de Potter; and the curious book of M. Augustin Thys, ‘De Belgische Conscrits in 1798 en 1799’, in which the author relates the revolt of the conscripts in Belgium against the armies of the French Republic. This fierce struggle of the young Walloon and Flemish peasants against the generals of the Directoire is one of the darkest episodes in our annals.

Two books of travels have attracted much notice this year: ‘In Spanje’ (‘In Spain’), by M. Van Steenweghen, and ‘Een Winter in het Zuiderland’ (‘A Winter in the South’), by Mlle. Virginie Loveling, a

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novelist of great merit, who in this last work has more especially described the life of tourists of all nationalities, who winter in the hotels and pensions of Nice, and Mentone, and of some Italian towns.

One of our most distinguished poets, M. Pol de Mont, has collected in two volumes a great number of prose studies on French, Provençal, Flemish, and Dutch writers of our epoch, under the title of ‘Losse Schetsen uit de Letterkundige Geschiedenis van onzen Tijd’ (‘Fragmentary Sketches on the Literature of our Times’). In the course of last year M. de Mont had already published a book of the same kind on contemporary German writers. The author supplies an able and warmly sympathetic sketch of the literary movement of the félibres in the south of France, who are endeavouring to revive the language and literature of the troubadours in the Middle Ages.

ÉMILE DE LAVELEYE - PAUL FREDERICQ
[Tr. by Miss Taylor]