New-York tribune., 1896-05-31
RECENT FICTION.
FOREIGN AND AMERICAN BOOKS

THE REDS OF THE MIDI: AN EPISODE OF
THE FRENCH REVOLUTION. By Felix Gras
JaaHer With tf0m an Introduction by Thomas A.
vier. l6mo. PIP. 1885, D. Appleton & Co.
COMEDIES OF coURTsHIP BY Anthony Hope
limo. PIP. 377. Charles Scribners Sons
MAGGIE A Girl. OF THE STREETS. BY Stephen
& Co.
| Patriotism. a profound and sympathetic insight
| into the history of great epoch and poets dell
| cate senStiveness to the beauties or form ana eN-
| preston have combined 70 make of NJ Felix Grass
THE Reds Of the MIDI a work OF real literary
value. 1t s far possible removed Doth III
style and conception from sensationalism; IL is' OF
| the contrary subdued, simple. unassumlng. pro-
| foundly sincere. Such artfice as the author mas
| found 1t necessary to employ mas 'peeh eaieiu''
concealed and II we feel its presence II Is only De-
cause experience has taught that the quality Is In
dspensable to a work which affects the imagination
| so promptly and with such force as does ths quet
| narrative Of the French Revolution.
The hero of the tale is one Pascaiet. peasan.
how born and bred in the romantic associations OF
Proyence-the country which VI. Gras calls nome
| and loves with devotion which one must pe
member of the Felibrge to fathom. The time Is ,he
| troublous days OF the great Revolution. The plot
may described roughly az the march OF the Mar
| seies Battalion Paris. There are tnnumerao'e
episodes tender pathetic. exciting, but they have
| been uniform kept subservient to the main de-
sign-the artistic presentation OF the significance OF
the historic march And It IL to be noticed that ,he
phenomenon is studied not from the point OF we"
of the mature historian but from the STANDPOINT oi
,be utIe Pascalet IL Is as II VI. Gras were to say
in contradiction to the generally accepted 'heory
The impulse which set the men OF Marseiiies
marching on their Adventurous journey had Its roots
not In carefully considered political conclusions, but
I'm an almost childish Indignation at the exisuns
state of affairs. This aspect OF the case VI. Hras
has presented with marvellous vlvidness In MS TWO
opening chapters entitled respectively I'm the Bad
Old Times" and Death or Slavery. The scene
bere ia I'm the little village Of Malemort close to
the Chateau de la Garde. Pascalet and his parents
are living in one of the miserable huts provided FOR
the peasantry In those days. while the chateau Is
Inhabited by Monsieur le Marquis. Madame le Mar
aulse and Monsieur Robert their son, VINO IS cav
alier dn Roy Now, day Pascaet and MS Ola
father are in the forest gathering acorhs "heh
hare dashes by them and Pascalet. childiike,
catches I'D a stone 70 throw 1t at the animal. and
in so doing frlghtens her The next instant Nom
rdcur Robert Is down on the luckess pair cruehy
beating the old father for interfering with his sport
Pascalet In fear OF his life. seeks refuge In the
mountain. This IS the beginning OF the chiids re-
volt II Is not reasoned 1t is instructive. the natural
feeling OF anger against those who have wronGed
those we love. When later Pascalet begins TO hear
runors OF what IL doing In Paris. and pushes OH 10
Avignon 10 enlis, among those who would crush inc
,yrant the Revolution Is neither more nor Jess than
n means OF avensing the cruel wrong done his
father on that afternoon when they were quietly
gathering acorns In the forest OF Malemort
I'm, II such be the motive OF The Reds OF the
Midi" Il should be understood thar the authors
manner Of presenting the truth Is as far as pos
sble removed from dldacticsm Tho lesson. the
theory II YOU please that the enthusiasm for the
Revolution In Provence was a domestic matter,
arising naturally out OF the cruel personal reia-
tons established between the peasants and
noblesae by the sehshness and blindness OF the lat
ter-ths point VI. Gras makes Invariably by impl-
cation II the reader Is convinced In the END, IL Is
less from anything the author has explicitly told
him than from the inevitable the spontaneous In
r.rence from the facts ne presents He has no other
weapon with which TO defend this Interpretation OF
history than a firm belief in the universal, ,sympa-
thy OF mankind and a Arm conviction That the
healthy moral man will defend himself against In
dignity ard insult We note, in conclusion. that the
translation of this Proyencal masterpiece Is model
OF accuracy.
II is as impossible to speak enthusiastically OF MI
Anthony Hopes latest volume OF short stories.
Comedies OF Courtshp' as it is TO dismiss It, The
stories neither successes nor failures they De-
long rather TO a class OF mediocre compositions.
which differ from others OF the same class only In
this respect that the medocrity Is Mr.. Hopes own
The ca may be illustrated In another way by cay
Ing that II the clever London lawyer has In the past
delight us when decked out In the picturesque cos
tune OF the mysterious Zenda or smartly ncased
I'm the modish dress Of a OF fashion, his ambi-
ton has evidently been this occasion to present
himself In simple morning dress. We should have
preferred him otherwise; but such as he Is. he Is
always a gentleman. graceful, reserved. witty al
most invariably, and sometimes garrulous. BY this
we do no, wish 10 imply that the stories comprised
al idaI I'm
the contrary. the construction Is compact but the
action ags here and there-becomes. to say. pro-
vokingly involved In chatty asides. The defect,
which is most noticeable In the second story, The
Lady OF the Pool" is the less pardonable since the
tale is by far the best in the collection; and even as
It is one Is half tempted 10 excuse the annoyance
in view OF tho success which has attended Mr..
Hopes design OF investing the classical temple in
the Pool with a vague hint OF a past tragedy. The
scene Is admirably set. The other stories in the
volume are The Wheel OF Love-" The Curate Of
Poltons." "A Three-Volume Novel," The Philoso-
pher in the Apple Orchard and The Decree Of
Duke Deodonato." With the exception OF the first
named. the stories are brief.
Mr.. Stephen Crane in Maggie" studies NewYork
tenement house life with the pretence OF aggressive
realism. He puts paper the grossness and
brutality which commonly encountered only
through actual contact with the most besotted
classes. Oaths, drunkenness. rags. stained walls.
cut heads. black eyes. broken chairs. derious howl
ings, the fiat staeness Of police report are his
properties In his finished book they still raw
material with the edge OF their offensivencss In no
way taken off: for Mr. Crane entirely lacks the
ability which has enabled some other men to deal
with sordid. disgusting and vicious themes in way
that made them at least entertaining. He has no
charm OF style. touch OF humor, no hint OF
Imagination. His story is one of unrelieved duness
In which the characters interest neither by their
IL, nx,aI thnn hat atfh
thrilling or amusing dirty without being pict-
uresque. There is nothing enticing In their lives
uplifting in the contemplation OF their sorrows.
There Is nothing alurng In the evils they exhibit.