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The Washington times. (Washington [D.C.]) 1901-1902, June 29, 1902, Editorials The Drama and Society, Image 21

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AMERICAN GAME BIRDS
Upland Game Birds by Edwjn
Sandys and T F Van Djkc is a olume
of the American Sportsmans Library
which should Interest not only the
sportsman but the naturalist and bird
lover for It Is evident that the authors
belong to both classes Tho subject Is
en interesting one and It has been very
well handled
By far the Kreater part of the book Is
the work of Mr Sandys Mr Van Djkes
chapters dealing only with tho game of
tho Pacific Coast and occupying less
than fifty chapters out of the books
fcur hundred but the style of both writ
ers is fascinating Tho work of Mi San
dj s Is characterized by ft i ery strong ele
ment of humor of n plajful and
blcal kind the sort of fun that keeps
one smiling oer sonic quaint suggestion
or humorous reminiscence Much of th
book Is naturally made up of personal
experience and the fact that the sports
man may be and aught to be an ardent
lover of wild life and a cloto observer
of all wild creatures Is brought out on
nearly every page Some of the descrip
tions of bird ways and performances aro
positively charming One of the most
delightful chapters is tho first In which
there are detailed accounts of the so
called quail or Dob White which Is
realb a partridge and not a quail at
all Most people who are at all familiar
with birds know this friendly little fel
loe and his habits and those who have
not the honor of his acquaintance will
feel as If they had after they read Mr
Sandys description of him A part of
It In which a well known fairy talo of
hunters Is contradicted and a bit of tho
wrltera experience introduced Is as fol
lows
A brood of young quail suddenly
come upon In an open space will dis
appear as though the grounl had swal
lowed them Thev have a marvelous
knack of diving under short grass and
tin leavec and once hidden they will
lemaln motionless until nctually trod
den upon In anj thing like cover a
search for them would resemble the
quest of the proverbial needle while
even upon almost bare ground only the
harpesi ejes can lotnto them Many
writers have claimed that a chick will
turn upon its back end cover itself with
a leaf which it holds in position by its
feet This Is to saj the least extrcmc
Ty doubtful especially as regards the
holding of tho leaf In any position by
cither feet or bill A chick in its rapid
dart to cover might turn upon Its side
or even upon its back under a leaf In
Its anxietv to avoid any telltale move
ment It might remain and be found In
the awkward position but to state that
It deliberated ccbes the leaf turns
over and holdb the Fcreen In position Is
going r bit too far What It actually
does In aH probability amounts to
l othlng more than an instinctive dive
Into the nearest cover a motionless
pause and a trust to coloration and the
quail providence If those who may
stumble upon a brood of quail will take
a sportsman naturalists advice they
will promptly back aw a for a few
yards sit down and remain -silently
watchful No search should be attempt
ed for the searcher Is more likely to
trample tbe life out of the youngsters
than to catch one But if he hide In pa
tience he may see the old hen return
mark her cautiously stealing to the spot
nnd hear her low musical twitter which
tells that the peril has passed Then
from tho scant tuft here from the
drooping leaf jonder apparently from
the bare ground over which his eyes
have roved a dozen times will arise ac
STORIES OF NEW YORK
Talcs of Destinj Is a new book of short stcrlcs by Elizabeth G Jordan
already known as a clever writer of this sort of fiction Her two previous
books Tales of the City Room and Tales of the Cloister at once
placed her in the front rank of the rather small company of writers who
have dealt with New York life Her present book Is a Judicious com
bination of several different kinds of stories and three of them are news
paper tales dealing with the newspaper woman in the office of a jellow
journal These as fiction of a new type will perhaps attract first atten
tion and at any rate they deserve comment by themselves
It may be doubted whether the newspaper woman In general Is
ed to undertake Just the Bort of work given out In two of these tales al
though in one case It Is friendship and not business which is at the bot
tom of the assignment A city editor appeals to the friendly feeling of
a woman reporter to help him to communicate with a married woman
with whom he is In love without telling tho go between the nature of the
love affair When she reaches the house she finds herself committed to
help on a liaison where she expected to find only a thwarted case of true
love It may be doubted whether there are many men In or out of the
newspaper business who would prove quite such a combination of the in
cautious and the cad for the performance indicated a striking lack of
dlplomicy as well as of candor In thejjother tale a woman reporter Is ask
ed to serve as a decoy and gain the confidence of another woman in order
to betray her This is jellow Journalism with a vengeance The third tale
Is not quite so yellow it Is a study of life In the tenements and contains a
useful hint for philanthropists
Perhaps the cleverest bit of work In the book all things considered Is
An Episode at Mrs Klrkpatrlcks tho pathetic little story of a joung girl
who believed she had a voice and came to New York to be mercilessly
guyed by the Inhabitants of her boarding house Another exceedingly clever
sketch for It is hardly more than that is A Collaboration which haunts
one with the Idea that the plot which It outlines really should have been
used In much more ambitious work Tho Wife of a Hero Is another of the
stories of the bitterness underlying the sweet in life of which this author
seems particularly fond and which it Is certain sho writes better than
she writes anything else There are several other tales and there Is not
one of them which is not clever while some of them aro more than this
They arc not amateurish or sentimental or commonplace and they are
flavored with a somber kind of humor and characterized by a knowledge
of human nature which Is thorough as far as It goes The character study
is uniformly good The men and irumen In these stories are people whom
we have known Even when they are seen only for a moment they Impress
one with their Individuality New York Harper i Bros
The Peppers Again
Five Little Peppers Abroad is a
new story of the Peppers by Margaret
Sidney which Is about as successful as
sequels can be expected to prove The
children travel through Holland Swit
zerland and some other places and all
the personages of the former tales re
appear In this one The illustrations
are by tht creator of charming chil
drens pictures Fanny Y Cory Bos
ton D Lotnrop Co
An Old Bachelors Romance
The Love Story of Abner Stone by
Edwin Carllle LItscy Is a slender little
romance somewhat In the stle of James
Lane Allen and dealing with tho samo
types Abner Stone Is a bachelor ofj
icriy nve dookisB pedantic and staid
During a bojourn in the couutry he
meets a Bluegrass maiden who proves
the one woman of the world to him
That Is all there Is to the nook except
the stylo which Is dainty and the de
scriptions which are often charming
Nc v York A S Barnes Co
LOUISIANA HISTORY
LaBtto of Louisiana by Mary
Devercux author of From Kingdom
to Colon and other historical novels
is as indicated by the title a story of
the famous pirate chief of Baratarla
Whether he was ever quite as white a
oul as the present author makes him or
cot there is no doubt that she has
made a good story of his eventful ca
reer and those who are anxious about
the truth of it can consult the library
records There is nothing In her plot
which is not possible or which anybody
can say did not happen and there Is
no questlcn that a great deal of It did
happen The book presents a vivid pic
ture of Louisiana at one of the most
eventful If not the most eventful and
Interesting period of her history
A strikingly picturesque turn Is given
to the plot by showing Nnpoleon at the
outset as the ecrly friend guardian and
insplraion of the hero and by dwelling
on the romantic friendship even devo
tion which this aroused in the breast
of Lafitte though owing to circum
stances this devotion was practically
fruitless A side of Napoleons char
acter entirely different from the popu
larly accepted view is here presented
and there seems considerable reason to
suppose that it Is not altogether a fic
titious creation Those who regard Na
poleon aj a coldlj ijrannlcal und am
bitious man apparently forget that the
passionate love and personal attachment
which he Inspired in hundreds of the
men who camo into contact with him
are not given to cold blooded tyrants
but to men who give something of them
selves In return
Lafitte is hero shown as a virile
proud and higb splrlted young French
nobleman who defrauded of his right
ful estate turns adventurer but with
out losing all of his noble qualities
That he was really a man of much char
acter and some admirable traits there
Is reason to suppose Tho part which he
took In the defense of New Orleans Is
described In tho concluding chapters of
the book and there Is a brief but satis
factory and vivid glimpse of Genera
Jackson Tho heroine Is a young French
girl as fresh and charming as a wild
rose and tho other characters aro
drawn with much skill and force The
book is attractively bound and Illus
trated and will be capital reading for
young students of hlstorj or for Idlo
hours In the summer Boston Little
Brown Co
THE TDIES WASHINGTON SUNDAY TUNE 29 1902
j I I I I I I I I M i I I I I I I I I I M I I M t I I M i I I t I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 1 1 II I I M I I I I I I I I I I I I I t I t M t I I I I I M I I I I t I t I I I I I I I I I I I I M t I t I M I I I I I I M
Pt
MMM mm m
mm nrri i i t t i i i i i i i i i i i t t i i i i t mm i i i i i i i i m i i t i i t i m i i
tive balls of pretty down until the spot
tppears to swarm with them And the
devoted mother will whisper soft greet
ings to each and In some mjsterious
manner will rcako the correct count
and then with nervous care shepherd
them for aid to where there is safer
cover And they will troop after her In
perfect confidence to resume their bug
hunting and botanical researches as
though nothing Important had trans
pired
Young quail are bisy foragers and
they grow rapidly Within a few days
after leaving the nest they aro capable
of a flight of several yards A brood
flushed hj a dog will buzz up like so
many overgrown grasshoppers flj a
short distance then dive Into cover In
a comical Imitation of the tactic of
their seniors As Insect catchers they
are unrivaled their keen eyes and tire
less little legs being a most efficient
equipment oven for a sustained chase
The parents scratch for them and tall
them to some dainty after the manner
of bantam fowls and the slncwd chicks
speedily grasp the Idea and set to work
for themselves A tiny quail scratch
ing In a dusty sput Is a most amusing
sight The wee legs twinkle through
the movements at a rate which
the eye can scarcely follow and the
sturdv feet kick the dust for lnche
around When a prey Is uncovered It
Is pounced upon with amazing speed
and accuracy whllo a flying Insect
may call forth an electric leap and a
clean catch a foot or more above the
ground
My first attempt at rearing young
quail ended In an awful tragedy rive
fresh eggs had been found and were
placed under a reliable game bantam
A suitable netting was erected about
the nest and In duo time five young
quail made their appearance They
were transferred to a net guarded grass
Kiplings Nursery Tales
Rudjard Kipling recently told an
American friend that he hadnt in years
enjoyed anything so much as he had en
Joyed making the Illustrations for his
Just So Stories
The public 13 so used to taking jou
seriously that It doesnt understand
when jou turn -aside to childrens sto
ries said the friend
Turn aside echoed Kipling Why
man Id be tickled half to death If I
could write well enough to really Inter
est little children That would be a big
thing a wonderfully big thing
Liszt
James Gibbons Huneker has Just be
5un a work of imposing proportions
which he expects to complete In 1001
It Is a life of Franz Liszt a subject
which ought to appeal with especial
force to Mr Hunekers talents
The Writings of Webster
Little Brown S Co will bring out a
three volume edition of Daniel Web
sters hitherto uncollected speeches and
vrltlngs In the fall
review 13 the critics honest best One
George Eliot by Leslie Stephens Is
a brief but eminently satisfactory bl
ogrjphy giving probably as good an
idea of this gifted woman as any one
could get from a book The author Is
not Intemperate cither In admiration
or criticism though here and there a
fine point of appreciation may be lack
ing and ho Is a little too much In
clined as most biographers are to
trace her books to this that or tho
other evpnt in her life There Is how
ever some very Interesting Information
about the people and tho conditions
surrounding Marian Evans Of the timo
and Its prominent writers tho author
says
The future historian of literature
may settle to his own satisfaction what
was tho permanent -value of the differ
ent stars In this constellation and what
was the relation which George Eliot
was to bear to her competitors He
will no doubt analyze the spirit of tho
age and explain how the novelists
moro or less unconsciously reflected the
domtnant Ideas which were agitating
the social organism I am content to
say that a retrospect colored perhaps
by some personal Illusion seems to
suggest a vory comfortablo state of
things People we are told were ab
surdly optimistic In those days they
run which Included two large ant blll3
In a week the joungsters had become
quite tame whereupon a raltguided but
well meaning person concluded to do a
kindly act In other words meddle
and turned them lcose The bantam
mother led them to tho poultry yard
which was presided over by a might
light brahma cock Now- the bantam
was game and when tho larger hens
vbo had forgotten her during her en
forced absence gave her stony stares
or it may be questioned the strict
legitimacy of her curious progeny she
declared war While she was battling
against heavj odds the fool brahma
cock spied the tiny quail which he
calmly devoured As the wee legs of
the last one were disappearing a sllght
1 delajcd but Impetuous brickbat hit
the brahma He literally met his end
gamely but ns he happened to bo worth
twentj five dollars a certain youthful
naturalist took his meals standing up
and slept on his stomach for at least
one week
Besides the qupll Mr Sandys dis
cusses partridge grouse ptarmigan tur
key woodcock plover cranes the
mourning dove and tho foreign game
which has been Introduced Into this
country The chanters are about equal
ly Interesting and amusing One of the
experiments described In the Bob White
chapter however deserves quoting as a
proof of the authors closeness to his
subject
If during the mating season a good
whistler will conceal himself and reply
to tho Bob Whiting of some amorous
male he can drav the bird across even
a broad field The small fellow will re
ply louder and louder and will get mad
der and madder and will draw nearer and
nearer until he Is perhaps onlya fevvyards
distant and full of fight Then let the
nhl3tler utter a defiant Bob white and
suddenly change to a low tender ka-lot-
LITERARY GOSSIP
Ethna Carbery
The death of Ethna Carbery Is deemed
a severe loss to the Gaelic revival move
ment and to Irish literature For ten
or twelve years she has been contribut
ing prose and verse almost Invariably
on Irish subjects to periodical litera
ture Though lets well known In this
country she has written for some of our
more Important American magazines
About a year ago she was married to
Seumas MacManus whose stories of
Irish peasant life made him an Interna
tional reputation
Unprofessional Interest
When Robert Shackletons typewriter
was copj lug his manuscript of Many
Waters she passed chapter after chap
ter with the usual professional in in
ference until toward the end of the
book sho thought she saw trouble ahead
for Shotterly Then one morning she
said to Mr Shackloton In a most earn
est way and with evident feeling I
hope jou will excuse my saying this
Mr Shackleton but please dont let
anj thing happen to Mr Shotterly If
jou can help It please dont let any
harm come to hin
can ask nothing more of him though
one might sometimes wish him wiser or
kinder Yours very truly
W D HOWELLS
Mr Thomas Nelson Page among
other things has this to say
Mr Lowell said I believe In an ad
dress that he delivered at the opening of
Bryn Mawr College that one of the
most Important pieces of advice he could
give was that It should be learned to
distlngush between printed matter and
literature
The liking foi different books Is almost
as Individual a matter as the liking for
different vegetables One person likes
potatoes and detests cabbages another
dotes on cabbage and cannot abide
potatoes but at least the caterer should
know the difference bPtwcen a cabbage
and a potato Respectfully yours
THOMAS NELSON PAGE
Mr Trank Norrls the author of
McTcague and Tho Octopus sent
the following letter as his contribution
to the writer ef this paper
Having due understanding as to the
nature of an oath I reply to yours
1 Would I rather have my books re
viewed Yes Its half of the fun of
writing cm
2 A fair re rlew in mv opinion Is one
GEORGE ELIOT
had not learned tint the universe was
out of Joint and were too respectable
to look Into the dark and nastj sides
of human life The generation which
hid been In its ardent jouth during
the Reform of 1S32 believed In progress
and cxrected the millennium rather too
confidently It liked plain common
sense Scotts romanticism and B
rons sentimentalitn represented obso
lete phases of feeling and suggested
only burlesque or ridicule The novel
ists were occupied In constructing a
most elaborate panorama of tho man
ners and customo of their own times
with a minuteness and psvchologlcal an
alysis not known to their predecessors
This work is of course an impllcjt
criticism of life Thackenys special
bugbear snobblsm represented tho ef
fete aristocratic predjudlces out of
which the world was slowly struggling
Dickens applied fiction to assail the
abuses which were a legacy from the
old order dobtors prisons and work
houses and Yorkshire schools nnd the
circumlocution office The social ques
tion was being treated bj KIngsley and
Mrs Gaskoll But little was said which
had any direct bearing upon thoso re
ligious or philosophical problems lr
which George Eliot was especially In
tcrcsted The novelists when the ap
hee and note the effect upon Bob In
nn Instant he Is a fussing fuming Irre
sponsible small devil racing here and
there with dragging wings and so ex
cited that he can hardly sputter oat his
challenges A repetition of
may bring him booming on reckless
wings almost Into the observers face
Now If this be not a hens
call and a suggestion to him that his
hen Is playing tricks with a stranger
whats ho fus3in about
Mr Sandys evidently has It In for
tint p3cudo naturalist Prince Lucicn
Bonaparte who wrote a continuation to
Wilsons book of natural history Here
Is a page which he takes to refute one
of the statements of the Bonaparte and
to provo that a title Is of no sort of ad
vantage In dealing with birds unless it
Is when they aro cooked
Bonaparte gives a most readable de
scription of the ntzat attack by an owl
upon firkeys roosting In a tree He
says Tho owl sails around the spot
to select his prey but notwithstanding
the almost Inaudible action of his pin-
Ions the quick ear of ono of the slum
berers perceives the danger which Is
Immediately announced to the whole
party by a cluck thus alarmed
they rlso on their legs and watch the
motions of the owl who darting like nn
arrow would Inevitably secure the In
dividual at which he aimed did not the
latter suddenly drop his head squat
and spread his tall over his back the
owl then glances over without Inflicting
any Injury at the very Instant that the
turkey suffers himself to fall headlong
toward the earth where he Is secure
from his dreaded enemy
This Is purely imaginary How could
he see what the owl did or what the
turkejs did These who have shot tur
keys on the roost know how much or
rather how little of detail can be seen
even In the brlghte i of moonlight And
A Report of a Ranch
In his Story of the Cowboy pub
lished by D Appleton Co Emerson
Hough gives an account of the quarterly
report of a foreman to the Eastern
ranch owner which constituted the most
serious labor of the year and which is
said to have read as follows
Deer sur we have brand 800 caves this
roundup we have made sjm hay pota
toes is a fare crop That Ingllshman
let in charge at the other camp got to
fresh an we had to kill him Nothing
much has haptned sence u lef Yurs
truely JIM
Gilbert Parkers New Book
A now novel of adventure by Gilbert
Parker Is promised for fall publication
by Messrs D Appleton Co The story
will have for Its hero ono Dick Dono
van
More Tales by Aldrich
A new volume of short stories by
Thomas Bailey Aldrlch is announced for
publication this fall by Houghton MilTta
Co
THE AUTHOR AND THE CRITIC
Mr George Sands Goodwin a writer
n the Critic anxious to settle many
vexed and vcxlnr questions wrote the
following letter to several well known
authors
1 Would you rither lune jour books
reviewed or submitted to the public
without rev lev
2 What In your opinion constitutes
a fair rivlew
3 Is there apparent to you a lack of
conscientiousness In the criticism of
modern books If so what remedj have
you to suggest
4 Are English reviews fairer than
those written by American critics
5 One writer hus answered that In his
opinion book review Ing is an impudent
intrusion on the business of authorship
do jou agree with him
Mr How ells responded as follows
I think nny sensible man likes his
books fairly reviewed English reviews
of American books nre apt to bo fairer
than our own because like American
reviews of English books they have no
personal bias for good or bad A fair
In which you can discover the writers
sincerity and evidence that he has read
the book
3 Is there a lack of conscientiousness
In the reviewing of modern books
Rather Ivn written reviews mself
The remedy I have to propose is that
book review lug should be a department
b Itself on the staff of any periodical
or Journal so that reviewing should not
be anjbodyj business done at oJd
times etc Also that tho reviewer should
have the choice of what books to treat
and that he should take only two or
three at a time
4 Are English reviewers fairer than
AmerKan No
5 Do you tonslder book reviewing an
Intrusion Of courso not As a novelist
the mans work belongs to tbo public
Whoever said that about Intrusion was
an ass Sincerely yours
TRANK NORRIS
Here is how Mark Twain replied to
the writers communication on the sub
ject of book rev lew lng
I suppose I ought to take an Interest
In this subject but really I dont
I would have answered sooner but I
have been bedridden eight dajs with
gout Truly yours
S L CLEMENS
proach such topics speak with sincere
respect of religious belief though they
obvlousl hold also that true Christi
anity Is something very different from
tho creeds which nre romlnally ac
cepted by the churches They regard
such matters as generally outside of
their sphere and simply accept the view
of the sensible layman with a prejudice
against bigotry nnd priestcraft Here
was ono special r ovlnce for the new
writer George Eliot alone came to
fiction from philosophy
So much for George Eliots place
among tho writers of her day ns Mr
Stephens sees It Of her
relation with Mr Lewes he
sas
Their house became a temple of n
domestic worslp In which he was con
tent to be high priest of tho presiding
deity
At tho same time tho biographer
makes It clear that the humility and
self distrust which wore among George
Eliots strongest traits prevented this
situation from having anything unpleas
ant In Its aspect While there seems
no doubt that her Intellect was superior
to thar of Lewes there Is also little
doubt that without him she would never
nave hid tho confidence to attempt tho
asks sao undertook Tho biography Is
i fascliatlng ono to nny reader Inter
ested 1 1 the subject New York The
Macmlllan Company 75 cents
merf mm WMIM
wis mum mum
I M M M I I I I M 1 t I t I I t i i t i i I I I l M M i M
while the naturalist certalnlv mlzht
cautiously approach the slumbering tur
keys how about the owl That bird Is
not at all careless of his own safety
his eyes are for night service and his
wonderfully acute why wouldnt
he se or hear the naturalist Again
as regards the turkeys sleeping tur
keys at that hearing the owls wing
sailing too and that wing especially
equipped with a feather formation to
prevent sound And then the darting
like an arrow no owl with the possible
exception of the hawk owl and that
other day hunter the snowy owl ever
darts anything like nn arrow All the
owls that I have seen and they number
quite a few sidled noiselessly up to the
prey and then grabbed It with hooks
that seldom miss Finnly the turkey
falling headlong If It ei er reached the
ground In that fashion and was fat and
consequently heavy It would stand a
good chance of breaking Its limber neck
to say nothing of rapping Its peculiarly
tender head against something much
harder Any country boy knows how
easy It Is to temporarily stun a turkey
even with that handy missile a green
apple And after the turkey had fallen
headlong to tho ground what then It
would simply be precisely where old
Bubo Virgtnlanus would prefer to have
It whether he caught It on the fly or on
the first bounce ono or other of which
he would be mighty apt to do No a
turkey of very limited night vision go
ing to the shadows to hide from a great
horned owl that probably could see wall
enough to count the hairs on a black
cat sitting oh a coal pile In a cellar Is
not sound protective tactics Nor will
the theory that there might be conveni
ent brush to screen the turkey when on
the ground bear out the statement A
great horned owl will walk into a hen
house or under an outbuilding or fal
len tree kill under the shelter and then
drag out his kill This I have moro than
once seen him do and I have scored my
kill by moonlight as ho dragged forth
the victim
The author Is as emphatic In his
condemnation of unsportsmanllko and
dishonest hunters as ho Is in his re
marks about misleading naturalists with
and without tltc3 Like most writers
on natural history he urges strictness In
the matter of passing and keeping laws
to protect game and has no use either
for the pot hunter or the man shooting
for a record This Is one of his exposi
tions on the subject
To their shamo he it said that a
host of well-to-do and apparently re
spectable citizens appear to look upon
the gamo law as though they Imagined
It to be a sort at legal sieve expressly
designed for something to be strained
Uhrough It Just why some men who
perhaps would spend their last blood
In resenting an open attack upon their
honor can sink to the level of a sneak
thief when It comes to a question A
obeying a game law I am unable to
fathom They can well afford to wait
they cannot truthfully plead cither Ig
norance or necessity yet when the test
comes they are as rotten as the stink
ing birds which foul their lawless
trail for they never durst take home
their game It Is my misfortune fo
have met sonto of these men to haTa
heard their smug boastings of how in
their small rascality they evaded this
game warden or tipped bribed Is tea
proper word that ono and the boast
ers never appeared to realize how truly
their ovn testimony damned them In thj
opinion of sportsmen of the True Blue
Lodge which like that other great
lodge sternly holds each brother to the
leal the fair and the clean
There are two or three good shootln
stories In the book by the way New
York The Macmlllan Company
NORTH GEORGIA FOLK
Abner Daniel by Will N Harben Is a Southern story full cf the at
mosphere of the region with which It deals The author has got holi of a
new field not a very large or varied one but interesting up to a certain
point and to drop Into a colloquialism he Is working it for all it is worth
However so long as It is worked to so good a purpose as in this book his
readers are not likely to complain The story ought to be read with especial
relish by Southern people who like the quaint dialect and ways of the old
fashioned country folk The scene Is laid In tho timber lands of North
Georgia near a small village and the characters are all drawn from that
part of the country The central personage who gives his name to tho book
Is not exactly the hero but he is a sort of chorus of the David Harura
order who crystallizes situations into proverbial philosophy The real hero
is his nephew Alan Bishop a young man who at the out t of the story
attacks the problem of getting a railroad to come through rcme timber land
bought by his father In a wild speculation The heroine Dolly Barclay is a
tj pical Southern girl of the village not the plantation type Another racy
character In the book Is PolwBiker mountaineer and ex moonshiner who
is devoted to young Bishop as vassals of old were devoted to their Heg9
lords and whose quick wit and daring solve several problems which would
apparently have been Insoluble without him In some ways Baker is
the most successful piece of character drawing the author has ever done
for he Is not only realistic but interesting end unexpected and full of fine
traits and quaint humor without being impossible
The jollity of tho book Is one of Its salient qualities It bubbles with
fun from beginning to end and this Is humor of a distinct type It Is not tho
dry quizzical humor of New England which often consists of a slight
under statement or a paradoxical bit of philosophy nor the extravagant and
grotesque fun of the West nor the sly and half childish fun of the negro
at which one laughs first Inquiring the reason afterward nor tho polished
wit and play on words of more formal circles It Is the homely humor which
was blocked out before the war by Major Jones and has been attempted by
several other Southern writers but seldom as successfully as here It is
the kind of fun which suggests three or four good natured full blooded
easy going small farmers of the middle South sitting on the veranda in tho
blazing noon or the evening twilight with something good to drink near
at hand swapping storlei of which perhaps one out of five can be called new
It is characteristic of the people and the place and neither that nor
any other kind of characteristic can bo beaten out of them Their good
humored content with themselves Is one of the strong conservative force l
of the South and it Is just as well that the rest of the country should seo
and understand It ns it is They do not concern themselves overmuch
about understanding the rest of the country consequently it is important
that there should be comprehension on the other side
The core of the story Is sweet and wholesome withal and it is thor
oughlj original It will pay anybody who likes realism to read It New
York Harper Bros
Haggis With Paprika
T W II Crosland is a brave man and
his book Tho Unspeakable Scot Is In
the prospectus stage and a cursory
survey of that prospectus Is enough to
move even a Highland regiment to pyro
tcchnlcal profanity
The author sas that ho has under
taken the work not In a spirit of flip
pancy or truculence but merely with an
honest desire to hold the mirror up to
Scotland and enable her for once to
see herself ns others seo her
Then he delicately Indicates that the
vogue of the Scot is on the ware that
In nolltlcs art letters eic acuusuu
undertakes to deal with Scottish swag
ger uncouthness dipsomania ana
host of other similar themes
Summary Correction
In An American at Oxford Joha
Corbin tells a story of Jowett who at
one time was master of Balliol An
undergraduate named Barnes bad been
so Independent of his tutor that ha was
sent up to the Head of the College
which Is not at all a promotion When
he reported the Master was writing
and merely paused to say Sit down
Mr Barnes You aro working with Mr
Donkin are you not The culprit
said he was and sat down Jowett
wrote on page after page while the un
dergraduate fidgeted Finally Jowett
has accomplished almost nothing He I looked up and remarked Mr Donkin
not Good morning After
says you aro
that the undergraduate was more In
clined to work with Mr Donkin
A REVOLUTIONARY ROMANCE
Mj Captive Is a romance of Revolu
tionary times by J A Altsheler author
of In Circling Camps The Wilder
ness Road and several other good
novels dealing with American history
Mr Altshelcrs work Is always Inter
esting from Its realistic truth and a
certain clear cut and definite outline
which makes it easy to follow the story
He deals with stirring events and fas
cinating characters and he knows how
to tell n story and to paraphrase
Hamlet in an historical novel the
gales the thing
Tho present book whllo somewhat
slighter In theme than one or two of the
others Is Just as good in its way The
hero is one of Morgans men tho horo
lco 1b tho daughter of an English offi
cer and tho tlmo Is Just after the bat
tle of Kings Mountain near which the
scene Is laid Tho girl In tho case Is
no paper doll of a heroine but full of
rplrlt and Ideas of her own and soma
of her willfulness makes It anything but
comfortable for the hero though unllka
some of the maidens to whom we have
been introduced in latter day Action
she Is neither unwomanly nor so In
tensely and erratically feminine in cap
rice as to approach insanity She Is
a high mettled proud and resource
ful girl devoted to her own country but
not Incapable of appreciating the pa
triotism of the hero after considerable
proof of It
Among the characters ire two or threa
noted guerrilla captains of the time
Morgan and other historical personages
Tho heros horse Old Put deservei
mention as a character for he certainly
shows as much Individuality as most
men and proves that Mr Altsheler can
do that somewhat difficult thing creata
an original horse portrait iNew York
D Arpletcn and Co

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