The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1891-04-10
Literary Note.

title of story by Judge Tourgee,
which is soon to appear In the New
York Ledger. 1t is one of those sur
prises which this indefatigable writer is
always springing on the literary world,
to the confusion of the critics, who
have no sooner got him fitted to a
niche than he jumps down and clam
bers into another. Utterly defiant of
ironclad rules, by which under the
claim of art they attempt to chain hc-
ton to insignificance and vapidness.
he chooses his character wherever he
sees fit and portrays them with a vivid
llfelikeness, which compels recognition
and stamps each one indelibly upon
the readers memory. "a Son of Old
Harry" is emphatically a horse story,
concerned in part with the evolution
of the trotter-- and is most appropri-
ately published by the sons of Robert
Bonner, the veteran patron of the trot-
ter, whose stable is the haven to which
the finest of the equine type is sure to
tend.
No reader of Judge Tourgee's books
can have failed to note his genuine
love for the horse. His equine charac-
ters are as distinct and individual as
his human ones. In this equality he
is, perhaps, unrivaled by any other
writer. His horses are something
more than mere incidents Of a story;
they are actual characters. Already,
those who have followed his works have
wondered at the scope and variety of
the types he has depicted. Old Loll-
ard, his vicious but doughty son,
Young Lollard, and Jaca, the pet mare
of "a Fools Errand," Satan of "Bricks
Without Straw" Sachem of John
Eax," the trotters in "Figs and Thist-
les" the blooded browns and the rangy
Hambletonian, which the daughter of
the Engineer and the quaint old doc
tor drive through the pages of "Black
Ice and Dewstowe's four-in-hand in
Buttons Inn," are not only among
the most perfect specimens of the
equine family, but are so linked with
the fortunes and personality of the hu-
man characters, that they become es-
sential to the action-they are not
merely creatures but companion char
acters. To this vpried collection of
equine portraits, he has lately added
that magnificent picture of strength
and courage-the horse which bore
Dan Portion ahead of the tide which
came,
"Rushlng and roaring and laundering down.
Into the streets OF pent JohnstownV y
Though without the unlimited means
which enables the owner of Maud S.
to gratify his inclination, no one has a
better title to the designation, 'the
horses true lover" which critic be-
slowed upon him years ago, and no
one better than he understands the re.
lation of the horse to certain epochs of
American life which constitute the
background of his new story, "A Son
of Old Harry"
1t is a notable fact, too, that while
SO fond of the horse himself as to
make the animal distinct element Of
almost every one of his works, there is
never anything "horsey" about them.
The flavor of the stable, the arts of the
jockey and the vice Of the gambler
have no place in his pages. The gen.
tleman, the soldier, the lady and the
lover find companion, servant, friend
in the intelligent animal who at once
serves their needs and shares their
fortunes. He takes the horse away
from the groom and puts him on the
canvas with his master. In addition
to this, we may add that his horses,
like his human characters, are always
typical Americans, whom every reader
recognizes at a glance as part of the
every day life of the country.
"a Son of Old Harry is title
which promises much in the hands of
such writer, though the professional
horseman is sure to mistake its signih-
canoe.