New-York tribune., 1888-08-26

| that Miss Remington and her mother and Dolninus
are in any sense lifc-studics They are plainly
evolved from the disorderly imagination of very
young writer who has been i'll advised Miss
Daintrey has not followed Zola in photographing
the uclicst examples of the worst types to be
| found in modern society She has invented i'm
possible people ard put them forward as models
| of improprcty. In thus committing herself TO O
false theory of art she has also deterioratcd Ia
| mentally in her style. The scenes be-
| tween Mamie and Dominus are rather
i limitations of dime-novcl heroines than essays
jim serious fiction. Nothing could be more tawdry.
mclodramatc and unnatural than the manner
| in which these two very bad characters make
| love and quarrel They are always in the super
| lative mood. Their breasts are always heaving.
their eyes always darting fiery glances, they
| are always calling one another My Queen and
| NV King when not otherwise engaged in ours
| ing and swearing and indulging in the tallcst OF
tall talk" We say it reluctantly but it is
unfortunately only too obviously true that the
author shows q by no means praiseworthy desire
to write wicked book. and has failed from
sheer ignorance Of the subjects she tries to treat
| No doubt such ignorance is to be desired. but
there is no reason why juvenile experiments Of
| the kind should be encouraged, and many ap-
parent ones for dcprecating them. The only scenes
| in this book which at all approach realism are
those in the clearinghouse, and they are marked
by an exaggerated vulgarity and coarseness.
"A X' has written clever and brilliant
novel in His Way and Her WILL An American
| girl and charming one, is the heroine Of 1t. and
it is full of bold and true strokes of analysis sharp
social SATIRE and shrewd observation. One of the
special humors of the story is Mrs. Roosevelt Rose
the lady correspondent" who undertakes for a
consideration to introduce rich vulgarians into
society and docs IL too. despite protests and re-
,aonstrances. with tact and skill worthy OF bet
ter cause Mrs Rose is clear-cIt individuality.
So are the Peclzs, whom she chapcrones. So is
| Moray Stuart a strange, original character called
Prince Charming" by his friends and who con-
ceas an enormous egosm and basencss under an
afrectation Of othcr-wordness" Nina Win
| throp is so womanly woman. so delightful in her
| caprices so cleverly studied throughout, that we
! hardly think woman could have created her. A
woman does not generally admire her own seX
and the inventor of Nina evidently entertains a
profound regard for women. Even Mrs. Odlarne
| who is much to be laughed at. is treated so ten
| derly that no contempt for her mingles with the
amusement of the reader The book is full OF
clever things and it ends in the most satisfactory
way, which is generally much better than trying
to make novel conform to the scamy side of real
life.
Mrs Campbelrs Roger Berkeley's Probation
| is scarcely TO be called novel. 1t is pleasant
sketch in which the colors are laid on lightly and
| little regard seems to be paid to purpose IN the
| composition. A spendthrift father OF fascinating
manners who does his best to pauperize his family
son of stronger fibre. whose bent 1t is to pant
but who gives up a career to learn business:
| deformed but amiable and dependent cousin;
small mystery originating in the larcenous proclvi-
ties of the neer-do-well parent-constitute the
piece and il goes on smoothly and Interestingly
| TO the orthodox denouement in the clearing up OF
the mystery, the release Of TIE good son from his
| unpleasant thraldom to business and the unfold
ing of various agreeable possibilities 1t is sum-
mer story, light and in the main cheerful. but de-
manding no concentration Of thought from the
reader.
Mr.. King has exploited the recent scientific
researches into hypnotism and allied stat IS in his
| story Haschisch." 1t is sensational, beginning
with a murder and robbery and the conviction of
| an innocent man. What follows is in the detec-
tive line but the employment of haschisch to Sc
cure proof against the real murderer is something
new in fiction, and it is treated with considerable
| skill and effectiveness here. The texture OF the
tale is loose and there is little evidence of purpose
full study of character in it. but it is not trashy
it is written in good English, and the intent IS
| we'll sustained throughout
Miss Fothergill could hardly have written a
| duller novel than " The Lasses of Lever House"
if she had tried to do 1t is dsmaly, exasperat
ingly stupid from beginning to end Never was
there family of English girls living in small
village who less deserved to have their dreary.
colorless annals preserved and the idea of invent
ing such family is so odd that it cannot be
thought on without perplexity.
Any other name would have done just as well
as that which Miss Braddon has taken for her last
novel It is not at all bad story; in fact it is
much better than the average of new novels. 1t
| is written with Gaze about detail which modern
novelists seem more and more to shrink from |;
at least the increasing slovenliness of large class
of such books points that way The plot of The
Fatal Three is a respectable one 1t is story of
the fathers eating wild grapes and the teeth of the
| children being set on edge. The secret is well
kept too and the reader is apt TO assume the
lidty of Mildreds conscientious difficulty. and to
come with a sense of surprise upon the revelation
which clears everything up-unhappily too late to
restore the peace of mind Of those who have suf-
fered by the misunderstanding. 1t is not cheer
full story, but it would perhaps be going too far
TO assume that the author had any intention OF
preaching fataiism.
| Iouis Ulbach's two novels, The Steel Hammer
| and For Fifteen Years." form story, which.
but for its excessive length, would be a very good
one 1t is the tale of murder. for which an inno-
cent man was condemned on the strongest kind Of
circumstantal evidence. The wife Of the real as
sassin surprises her husbands secret and while
she will neither denounce nor abandon him she re-
solves to devote her life to repairing the wrong he
had done AS the innocent victim has committed
suicide in prison this work Of restitution is diff
cult but the murdorers wife takes the victims
wife and child to live with her. and in course Of
time her own son falls in love with the girl whose
father his father caused the death OF. Clearly
there is ample room here for complications, and