will go still further and deal with the theory un-
derlying his criticism, and is naturally written on
the assumption that the criticism intrinsically is
not a negligible part of his contribution to our
letters.

The documents of importance begin with the
papers on Italian subjects, supplemented by arti-
cles and reviews on his New England friends and
acquaintance, which made their appearance in the
North American Review during the sixties. His
regular book notices in the Atlantic Monthly
begin with the June number of 1866 and extend
to the issue for January, 1881, and all the while
he was contributing other matter to his own jour-
nal as well as to the North American. During
the year following his retirement from the Atlan-
tic to devote himself more exclusively to the
writing of fiction, came his first really audible and
unmistakable revolt against the complacent
régime of the established English novelists, the
essay on Henry James in the Century for Novem-
ber, 1882. Richardson, Fielding, Dickens, and
Thackeray, all four were struck at a blow--in one
sentence. It is all very mild to us now, who
understand that these great novelists are not per-
fect models of artistry. But in those days such
heterodoxy precipitated an avalanche of indig-
nant protest. Three years later the battle began
in earnest with Howells quartered in the "Edi-
tor's Study" of Harper's Magazine. These
papers extend from January, 1886, to March,
1892, his occupancy of the "Easy Chair" dating
from December, 1900, to the time of his death.
Meanwhile, he contributed voluminously to other

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