The Portland daily press., 1894-03-02

oOoploc al ooedsioHdl lapse IN grammar
and continuous tone of sensation with
out a sufficient basis. the narrative
shows one fact: that the writer knows
how to construct a narrative, how tc
tell a story.
By will an immense property is left to
two young folks, provided they marry
in three months time. A final settle.
ment is made by which they are welded
and at once separate, Madame betakine
herself to Australia. Here,a compiled,
tion arises iu the presence of former
friend of the husband. now married her.
self, but retaining much sentiment
towards her former wouldhave- been
| lover, who by this time has managed
! to fall in love with his own wife Here
is pretty tan lie, which the reader will
unravel for himself.
New York: D. Appleton & Company
Portland: Loripg, Short & Harmon.
Price S1.00.)
The Recipe for Diamonds is an odd
commingling of fact and fancy. Its OBJ
ject is the discovery of recipe for
| manufacturing diamonds out of COM
mon charcoal, which is supposed to have
been lost to the world in 1916. The
book is replete with bright, fresh dia-
logue and has tone of dry humor
throughout that is very entertaining.
The reader will look in vain for any
scientific disquisitions upon the methods
of treating carbon with view to the
production OF the precious stones, but
he will be carried along in dashing style
through a series of adventures which
may repay him for any possible disap-
pointment he may feel III not reaching
the result for which alchemists long
have sought. The Recipe for Diamonds,
by G. ]. Cutcliffe Hyne. New York:
D. Appleton & Co.; Portland: Loring,
Short & Harmony
A Gray Eye or So is story of social
life in London and Ireland, though the
scenes might just as well have been laid
anywhere else. There is honest and dis
honest love in it, both of which as put
in evidence by the persons of the drama
become rather absurd. There is not
wanting dramatic movement but it is
spun out at too great length when one
considers how few important situations
there are. The characters are set too
high and do not, sustain themselves i'll
their assumptions. But, after all, the
story is interesting, which is the main
thing unless a book be written for
purpose" and the ones that are SO writ
ten usually are read because they get to be
the fad and ore must be able to talk
about them in society. A Gray Eye or
So. BY Frank Frankfort Moore. New
York: D. Appleton & Co; Portland:
Loring, Short & Harmony
In Direst Peril Is a novel by David
Christie Murray. 1t processes to give in
his own words an episode in the life of
John Fyffe Qate acuing) General of
Division under General Garibaldi, and
is in the plain, blunt style Of the soldier.
1t begins with love at first sight; and.
for the sake of the lady John Fyffe sue
cessfully undertakes the delivery of her
father from an Austrian prison where
he has lain for years while his friends
until the beginning of the story, had
believed him dead. Our hero delivers
him as we have said, and a second time
saves him from capture and perhaps death
by the theft of forty thousand pounds
from this same lady of his choice, who
becomes his bride. Read the book and
see how it is DONE New York Harper
& Brothers; Portland: Loring, ST ort &
Harmony
Whatever Ouida writes will assuredly
be read by all sorts of people, for she is
never dull. Her latest stories, Two
Offenders, tell us of An migrate, an artist
whose works are in the Luxemb ourg,
but who is forgotten, old crippled and
poor. His offense is that he will not
take kindly to being separated from his
little grandson and his pet dog and
nourished in luxury where everything
goes by rule and regulation. His heart
breaks and his body wastes 10 death
under mistaken kindness. The other
offender assassinates his wife's illegiti-
mate son, after enduring a quarter of
century of misery and i'll treatment
from them both. He appears to have
done the right thing, but he was too
slow about it. (Philadelphia j. b.
Lippincott Company; Portland: Loring,
Short & Harmony
Some Salient Points in the Science of
the Earth. By Sir J. W. Dawson. This
issthe latest work by this veteran worker
in the geological field, and he claims
that there is much in it that is new and
much in correction and application
of that which is old. Two chapters are
devoted to the Cocoon Canadense, and
as Mr.. Dawson was one of the original
workers who brought this remarkable
fossil to light, what he has to say on
this subject possesses an unusual inter-
est. He explains in detail the theory
which would allow organic remains to
be preserved in formation the charac-
ter of the Laurentian. Other chapters
are devoted to the later formations and
the fossils that are found in them. Mr..
Dawson has been a careful investigator.
and what he has to say on the subject