The herald., 1893-06-11
TBY T.. pEHYmRR.i

H0ught0n, Mlllltn az 20. are the pub
ishers of Bret Harte's new novel Sally
Bows, which is accompanied by three
hort stories which complete a very in.
eresting volume. The authors style
ibanges az he grows older, and for page
lfter page in the first and longest story
il this new volume one might imagine
himself reading another Of Mr.. Henry
fames's analytical studies of conduct.
He learns what Colonel CORTLAND
thought before he met Miss Dows; what
40 meant when he said something that
night have meant something else /; Iust
Exactly what his sensation was when
Miss BOWS appeared, and whnt he
thought she might be thinking Of, and
Why he did not speak when he might
hsve spoken. Minute explanation Of
conduct, in fact, occupieH great deal OF
Ipace in this latent production OF the
pen of the creator of Roaring Camp
and Colonel Starbottle. 70 be cure,
The story begins with a very vivid
picture in words--and not a word too
mnch-of an artillery manoeuvre on the
field OF battle, and there Ia at least one
Their chapter very strong in pictorial
ense, which deecribea one OF the
farliest ku-klux outrages. The acene is
laid in Georgia in the reconstruction
period. Miss BOWS ia a southern blonde.
northern enterprise and eneaking
Iondnesa for Yankees. Colonel Court
land 10 an engineer and executive officer
OF newly-formed land and lumber COM
pany. When they first meet Miss BOWS
10 standing on cornice, mailing up
aths for q trelliswQrk, and she steps
from the insecure foothold upon the
polonePs head. His fate Is sealed at
That moment, as ID evidently ought to
be, for has che not "the smallest foot
south OF Mason and Dixon's liner"
There are three stories, OF which The
Conspiracy OF Mrs. Bunker has gen.
uine dramatic power and a pictorial
background that Is quite unfamiliar,
The Transformation OF Buckeye Camp
tele ua how the equanimity OF q mining
town was upset by the advent of one
small but determined woman, and of
the wholly unexpected consequence OF
her appearance, what other Amer
lean novelist has, like Mr.. Harte, so un-
Isilingly adorned what even he has
touched, or disylaysd an energy 30 I'M
tagging in the creation of new types
and the investment with new interests
Of familiar scenes. The Genius of Fic-
lion attends the labors of Mr.. Bret
Harte as faithful aB ever. Whatever
hie theme, he still invests it with the
charm of invention and the glamour OF
romance.
s~#
Scribner's Sons have very interest
ing novel, on the style of Captain Smaller
Kings writings, entitled 'In Blue Uni
form, by George 1. Putnam. An army
novel is not new thing in the literature |
If fiction. II is, therefore, more to the
,redit OF the ths author that no has made
lis story so thoroughly entertaining.
rhe quiet picture of garrison life at
frontier post is ekillfully drawn as an ef
ective background for the little comedy
played by! the several characters. A
garrison ia little world by itself, having |
It's varied personality, each with likes
and dislikes, hopes and and ambi-
tons, joys and diaappointments. With
this life Mr.. Putnam Ia not very famil-
lar, he is Thoroughly in touch with it;
and this sympathy has been Of assist
nnce in giving artistic color to his story.
The very air OF the army post pervRdes
the book; and while the author has sue
ceeded in giving a flavor of humor to
much of hia narrative-which contains,
by the way, dainty love episode-the
strongest scene of the story comes
within the region of the tragic. The
scenes are laid in a portion of the coun-
try new to the novel readers, the broad
prairies OF Texas in the pioneer days.
Still the description 10 similar to Gap
tain Kings in his Dakota and Wyoming
romances. 1t is interesting in more
than one sense as 1t contains accounts
of Texas life in those early days, when
the prairie dog villages dotted the
plains, and were the only habita-
tions for many miles. When the broad
grassy plains were roamed over and
by the numberless herds of
the rich cattle kings. When ranch
was a principality in extent and rich
meas, the cowboy the monarch of the
plsins, the stage coach the palace car of
today, and the infantry, cavalry and
artillery OF the fort the guardians OF the
peace. The Texas and Pacific railroad
had just been completed, but was 80
miles from the tort, and the civilizing
process had just commenced at Red
town, the nearest station, but had not
penetrated the intervening leagues be-
tween the station and the fort. There
was at that time always fine grouping
of Texan color at the depot for the sur
prised admiration of the travellers. The
swarthy Mexican gracefully swinging
his brilliant blanket into new folds about
his slender form. The inevitable drunk
en- man. red faced and filthy, staggering
along the platform, feebly singing. A
few Indians, brown, blanket clad, stand
ing like posts. Tall, picturesque,
1.-THE cowboys in chaps, with re-
volvers and iingling spurs. The
ever present Jewish-looking man,
drummers from all over the world,
ranchmen returning from business trips,
rolling stones out for pleasure only.
These, together with the kissing of
steam, the clatter OF trucks, the ryth-
mical pounding OF the dining room
gong at the eating station, all portrayed
the border town on the outskirts OF civ
ilization as it then existed. With these
little bits of coloring for the foreground
OF very natural picture of garrison life,
and 3 background made of the head
quarters of the post on the Western
Texas prairie, with its long, low row OF
dingy brown cottages for the officers
quarters; opposite, the mems barracks,
with their long porches, behind these
the long line OF weather-worn cottages,
occupied by married soldiers, and be-
yond, the adobe walls of the corrals,
with stables, the hay and wood yards,
all of these surrounding the square, level
parade ground, from the center OF which
rose the tall tapering flagstaff, wavering
froro fba ,oIurnh opd laoripu baou;1r m