REVIEWS OF ETIDORHPA.
[Sidenote: B. O. Flower, Editor of The Arena, Boston.]
The present is an age of expectancy, of anticipation, and of prophecy;and the invention or discovery or production that occupies the attentionof the busy world, as it rushes on its self-observed way, for more thanthe passing nine day's wonder, must needs be something great indeed.Such a production has now appeared in the literary world in the form ofthe volume entitled "Etidorhpa, or the End of Earth;" the very title ofwhich is so striking as to arrest the attention at once.
A most remarkable book.... Surpasses, in my judgment, any thing that hasbeen written by the elder Dumas or Jules Verne, while in moral purposeit is equal to Hugo at his best.... It appeals to the thoughtfulscientist no less than to the lover of fascinating romance.
[Sidenote: Mr. Herbert Bates, in the Commercial Gazette, Cincinnati.]
In summing, I would say that I have found the book distinctlystimulating. It is odd, but with the oddity of force. It has passages ofuncanny imagination, but they excellently evade the enormous andextravagant. It is a book that by its title and by such features asstrike one at a hurried glance might easily repel. Yet it is a bookthat, studied carefully, calls for re-reading and deep meditation. Itstheories are capable of scientific demonstration, its imaginings, whilethey may not be fact, are always consistent with it. The reader who letsthe outside repel him errs sadly. Let him read it, and he will be aschanged in his position toward it, as ready to convert others, as is thereviewer, who picked it up with foreboding and laid it down with thesense of having read great thoughts.
[Sidenote: Dr. W. H. Venable.]
"The End of Earth" is not like any other book. The charm of adventure,the excitement of romance, the stimulating heat of controversy, the keenpursuit of scientific truth, the glow of moral enthusiasm, are all foundin its pages. The book may be described as a sort of philosophicalfiction, containing much exact scientific truth, many bold theories, andmuch ingenious speculation on the nature and destiny of man.... Theoccult and esoteric character of the discussions adds a strangefascination to them. We can hardly classify, by ordinary rules, a workso unusual in form and purpose, so discursive in subject-matter, sounconventional in its appeals to reason, religion and morality.... Thedirect teaching of the book, in so far as it aims to influence conduct,is always lofty and pure.
[Sidenote: Letter from Sir Henry Irving, to the Author.]
"_My Dear Sir:_ Let me thank you most heartily for sending me thespecial copy of your wonderful book 'Etidorhpa,' which I shall evervalue. I may say that when by chance I found it in Cincinnati I read itwith the greatest interest and pleasure, and was so struck by it that Ihave sent copies to several friends of mine here and at home. I hope Imay have the pleasure of meeting you some day either here or in London.I remain, sincerely yours, HENRY IRVING.
"20th March, 1896."
[Sidenote: Etidorhpa as a work of art. Prof. S. W. Williams.]
If a fine statute or a stately cathedral is a poem in marble, amasterpiece of the printer's art may be called a poem in typography.Such is "Etidorhpa." In its paper, composition, presswork,illustrations, and binding--it is the perfection of beauty. While thereis nothing gaudy in its outward appearance, there is throughout adisplay of good taste.
The illustrations were drawn and engraved expressly for this work, andconsist of twenty-one full-page, half-tone cuts, and over thirtyhalf-page and text cuts, besides two photogravures. The best artisticskill was employed to produce them, and the printing was carefullyattended to, so as to secure the finest effect.
[Sidenote: Eclectic Medical Journal, Cincinnati.]
No one could have written the chapter on the "Food of Man" but ProfessorLloyd; no one else knows and thinks of these subjects in a similarway.... The "old man's" description of "the spirit of stone," "thespirit of plants," and finally, "the spirit of man," is very fine, butthose who hear Professor Lloyd lecture catch Lloyd's impulsesthroughout. The only regret one has in reading this entrancing work is,that it ends unexpectedly, for the End of Earth comes without acatastrophe. It should have been a hundred pages longer; the readeryearns for more, and closes the book wistfully.
[Sidenote: New Idea, Detroit.]
One of the great charms of the book is the space between the lines,which only the initiated can thoroughly comprehend. Don't fail to readand re-read Etidorhpa. Be sure and read it in the light ofcontemporaneous literature, for without doing so, its true beauty willnot appear. Aside from its subject-matter, the excellency of theworkmanship displayed by the printer, and artistic beauty of theillustrations, will make Etidorhpa an ornament to any library.
[Sidenote: Cincinnati Student.]
This book, to use the words of the editor of the Chicago Inter-Ocean, is"the literary novelty of the year."... In a literary sense, according toall reviewers, it abounds with "word-paintings of the highest order"--insome chapters being "terrible" in its vividness, several criticsasserting that Dante's Inferno has nothing more realistic....
[Sidenote: The British and Colonial Druggist, London, England.]
We have read it with absorbed interest, the vividly-depicted scenes ofeach stage in the miraculous journey forming a theme which enthralls thereader till the last page is turned. Many new views of natural laws aregiven by the communicator, and argued between him and Drury, into which,and into the ultimate intent of Etidorhpa, we will not attempt to enter,but will leave it for each reader to peruse, and draw his ownconclusions.... Professor Lloyd's style is quaint and polished, andperfectly clear. The printing and paper are all that can be desired, andan abundance of artistic and striking illustrations are admirablyreproduced.
[Sidenote: New York World.]
Etidorhpa, the End of the Earth, is in all respects the worthiestpresentation of occult teachings under the attractive guise of fictionthat has yet been written. Its author, Mr. John Uri Lloyd, ofCincinnati, as a scientist and writer on pharmaceutical topics, hasalready a more than national reputation, but only his most intimatefriends have been aware that he was an advanced student of occultism.His book is charmingly written, some of its passages being reallyeloquent; as, for instance, the apostrophe to Aphrodite--whose name isreversed to make the title of the story. It has as thrilling situationsand startling phenomena as imagination has ever conceived.... There isno confusion between experiences and illusions, such as are common inthe works of less instructed and conscientious writers treating of suchmatters. He knows where to draw the line and how to impress perceptionof it, as in the four awful nightmare chapters illustrating the curse ofdrink. Etidorhpa will be best appreciated by those who have "traveledEast in search of light and knowledge."...
[Sidenote: John Clark Ridpath, LL.D.]
We are disposed to think "Etidorhpa" the most unique, original, andsuggestive new book that we have seen in this the last decade of a notunfruitful century.
[Sidenote: Times-Star, Cincinnati.]
It is as fascinating as the richest romance by Dumas, and mysterious andawe-inspiring as the wild flights of Verne. Hugo wrote nothing moreimpassioned than those terrible chapters where "The-Man-Who-Did-It"drinks liquor from the mushroom cup. There never was a book like it. Itfalls partly in many classes, yet lies outside of all. It will interestall sorts and conditions of men and it has that in it which may make itpopular as the most sensational novel of the day. Intricate plotting,marvelous mysteries, clear-cut science without empiricism, speculativereasoning, sermonizing, historical facts, and bold theorizing make upthe tissue of the story, while the spirit of Etidorhpa, the spirit oflove, pervades it all.... Happy is the scientist who can present sciencein a form so inviting as to charm not only the scholars of his ownprofession, but the laymen besides. This, Professor John Uri Lloyd hasdone in his Etidorhpa.
[Sidenote: The Inter-Ocean, Chicago.]
For eighteen years the writer has been seated at his desk, and all kindsof books have been passed in review, but has never before met with sucha stumper as Etidorhpa. Its name
is a stunner, and its title-page,head-lines, and weird, artistic pictures send you such a ghastly welcomeas to make goblins on the walls, and fill the close room with spooks andmystery. The writer has only known of Professor Lloyd as a scientist andan expert in the most occult art of the pharmacist, and can scarcelyconceive him in the role of the mystic and romancer in the regionheretofore sacred to the tread of the supernatural.... The book is theliterary novelty of the year, but those interested in such lines ofthought will forget its novelties in a profound interest in the themesdiscussed.
[Sidenote: The Chicago Medical Times.]
The work stands so entirely alone in literature, and possesses such amarvelous versatility of thought and idea, that, in describing it, weare at a loss for comparison. In its scope it comprises alchemy,chemistry, science in general, philosophy, metaphysics, morals, biology,sociology, theosophy, materialism, and theism--the natural andsupernatural.... It is almost impossible to describe the character ofthe work. It is realistic in expression, and weird beyond Hawthorne'sutmost flights. It excels Bulwer-Lytton's Coming Race and Jules Verne'smost extreme fancy. It equals Dante in vividness and eccentricity ofplot.... The entire tone of the work is elevating. It encourages thoughtof all that is ennobling and pure. It teaches a belief and a faith inGod and holy things, and shows God's supervision over all his works. Itis an allegory of the life of one who desires to separate himself fromthe debasing influences of earth, and aspires to a pure and nobleexistence, as beautiful and as true to the existing conditions of humanlife as Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. The sorrow; the struggle with self;the physical burdens; the indescribable temptations with the presenceand assistance of those who would assist in overcoming them; the darkhours, Vanity Fair, and the Beulahland, are all there.
[Sidenote: Indianapolis Journal.]
In every respect the volume bearing the title Etidorhpa, or the End ofthe Earth, is a most remarkable book. Typographically, it is both uniqueand artistic--as near perfection in conception and execution as can beconceived.... The author is John Uri Lloyd, of Cincinnati, a scientificwriter whose pharmaceutical treatises are widely known and highlyvalued. That a man whose mind and time have been engrossed with theaffairs of a specialist and man of affairs could have found time toenter the field of speculation, and there display not only the mostextensive knowledge of the exact natural sciences, and refute what isheld to be scientific truth with bold theories and ingeniousspeculations on the nature and destiny of man is marvelous....
The Addenda is as original as the book itself, consisting, as it does,of a list of names, some of whom are not subscribers, but to whom theauthor is deeply obliged, or whom he regards as very dear friends, andthose of a few whom he personally admires.... If each of them has a copyof Etidorhpa, or the End of the Earth, he possesses a book which is notlike any other book in the world.
[Sidenote: Cleveland Leader.]
It relates to a journey made by the old man under the guidance of apeculiar being into the interior of the earth. The incidents of thisjourney overshadow any thing that Verne ever wrote in his palmiest days.But perhaps the most singular part of it is that they are all based onscientific grounds. Dr. Lloyd, the author of the volume, is one of thedeepest students, and is well known as a profound writer on subjectspertaining to his profession, as well as one who has taken much pains instudying the occult sciences.... The book is a very pleasant one toread, a little redundant at times, but full of information.... Readerswho succeed in securing it will be very lucky indeed.
TRANSCRIBER NOTES:
Punctuation corrected without note.
page 47: no illustration is found in the original book for this reference.
page 228: "siezed" changed to "seized" (The guide seized me by the hand).
page 284: "begun" changed to "began" (began a narcotic hallucination).
page 338: "comformably" changed to "conformably" (that lies conformably with the external crust).
page 385: "wierd" changed to "weird" (and weird, artistic pictures).
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