The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1889-02-03

touching IN the mnke-up ol inns ullcurHo"i
undisciplined girl. "No, dear; no. ] don't !
know enough to be wife to you just now,
and you know it. And / couldn't |
keep house III for you, and
YOU couldn't afford TO keep me without
il. And then il would be all known and it
wouldn't be us two, dear and our lonely
meetings any more. And We couldn't be
engaged that would be too much like me
and Seth over again. That's what you mean,
dandy boy--for you're only dandy boy
you know-and they don't get married to
lakewood Southern girls who haven'ta mig
ger to bless themselves with since the war
No, no; that's what we've both allowed
dear, all along. And now, honey, it's near
time for me to go. Tell me something good
before go. Tell me thatyou love me as
you used to; tell me how you felt that night
at the ball when you first knew that we
loved each other. But Stop kiss
me irst-there once morc-for keeps"
The strong dramatic situations in the
novel stand out in striking contrast with
the poetic sentiment suilusing the tender pas
sagcs Of this simple idyl, and none more
wildly than the scene OF excitement and
reckless desperation at the barn, the retreat
chosen by Jack Ford and Greasy" for their
trystng place that afternoon. The disputed
boundary claim, through the introduction OF
other figures on the scene had brought the
bclligerent parties together and, with their
followers, had rushed furiously TO the en-
counter where "Marm McKinstry," having
been put on the track, was in search of
Cressy, had already preceded them. No
picture in the novel is more striking than
that Of this pioneer woman, whose cagcrncss
10 reach the barn now becomes wildly fran
tic on hearing her husband cry, as he and his
cayalcade swept past her down the slope"
''The IIarrisons hey sold MS out' "She ran
crouchingly seeking the higher grasses and
bramblos of the ridge To escape observation
from the meadow until she could descend
upon the barn from the rear. She threw
aside her impeding shawl; her brown IIol-
land sun-bonnet, torn of her head and
hanging by its strings from her shoulders
let her coarse, silver threaded hair stream
like name over her back her face aud
hands were bleeding from thorns and whit
| cned by dust But she struggled on liercely
like some hunted animal until she reached
the descending trail when. letting herself 20
! blindly, only withheld by the long grasses
she clutchcd on either side, she half fell, half
| stumbled down the slope and emerged be-
| side the barn brcathlcss and exhausted"
| The scene that almost Immediately follows
is one Of the two most thriilingy dramatic
In the novel It's not the province of the
critic TO do more than present the purpose
aud salient points Of the book under review,
therefore to enlarge further on the one in
question-to tell whether or not Greasy and
the school master finally marry, might
/ spoil the pleasure that the reader will
have In finding it out for himself, which We
are glad TO say can easily he done by a call
at Mansford's where the novel Is for sale.
"Thc Unpopular Public" by "Litcrc,"
/ ll,lnd, McNally & COZ tells the sad lesson
OF some lives that are not worth living, but
which will continue TO exist and suffer until
the evils Of our pre- cent civilization are rem
edicd. Liter" a nom dc plume evidently
Of the writer, selects her men and women
from the lower classes. where we find
Louise" the heroine Of the story, who is
| apparently the daughter Of barber, n man
over whom a rich saloon.kccper and villain
holds mctaphorica sword Of Damocles,
which he threatens 10 let fall unless Lou.
isc, ~ soon ms she IL old enough, u given
10 him ~ wife. Sorrow and trials are her
daily lot and relief only comes when the
plot removes her from this foul atmosphere
where she was thrown with the vile aud
base, among whom fate had cruelty driftod
her, but which she was not born In. The
story ends with her tragic death Just as hap.
pincss is within her grasp and she is about
to marry a nobic.hcart,l young follow, her
defender aud friend. Louis" Is the title Of
a short story In the same volume, which
cmbodics with painful distincincss the un.
happy career an tragic end Of Louis Lingg.
the handsome young Anarchist who, our read.
err will remember, committed suicide IN his
prison cell In Chicago, day or two before
his fcllow.Anarchists were hanged
From the same publishing house we have
received another novel, entitled "R leigh
Rivers" "a Tale Of the New south" by
%. o. u. strycr. This author cndcayors to
deal fairly with the purpose he has ia view
/ though IL sounds morc like the old South
/ than the ncw-in narrating the historic.
Of two Virginia families between whom
there l. an old fcud Of twenty ycar, stand.
/ ing. bristling all over with animosity and
ill-fccling. law suits and d sputcs. a- 10 the
/ rirhtiul ownership Of Fairfield Manor" n
handsome aud valuable estate. which has
/ just been decided In favor 81 Gen. Cato
Lewis the leading landed proprietor Of
the county and plaintiff Ia the suit thereby
/ reducing Col. Rivcr," the defendant 10
comparative poverty. In the fcud there are
the usual elements Of acrimony obduracy aud
| the dcadlicst yindicliycnoss, No often found.
among the Montague aud "Capulcts" Of
those old, stif and hnnrhty Southern com.
munitics. "l,alcigh Rivers" aud 'Inurn
! Lewis are the Romeo" and the 'Juliotr
u this tragic romance, which dc.tincs
their lives to much more commonplace
ending than that Of Shakespeare lover,
The mysterious murder Of Gen. Lewis" for
which Raleigh Rivers" on circumstantial
evidence, 4 arraigncd ercct- barrier he.
tween These fond hearts which, though the
young man l. found innocent Of the crime
be never quite succeeds Ia pulling down.
Their lives, once divided, remain So but
thcro Is a law Of compensation which
adjusts things right after all. and. like tb,t
fate which sometimes must be cruel IN he
Kind, our author disposcs OF these two vic.
Tins OF family fucd better. possibly. than
they could have done themselves.