New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-08-12
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
THE CURRENT NOVEL.

Ch nm Morrison lsmo PIP. 26I d. Appie'o" I"
r,,r WORTH OF PARNAssUs.- AND OF, 0THE Elk
"SToRIFs BY Logan Pcarsall Smith i|"'o' PIP
a77 Macmillan CO. -r, TIN
MOODYs LODGLNGI,Ha 81, Ann AIM Francis San
born l6mo. PIP. Ia Copeland D"''
Novelty OF theme is not the most ,,,,oa
characteristic OF tho anonymous s'o's a,,v
.rrhe Touch OF Sorrow" but the 'aie Is f'e"S -
ID I'D desnite its superfciality. may serve ~
ross q summers afternoon. Stella, the ner"''e'
= o,,,r woman of the Dodo type worldly "e""'-
o.; so,0sb nleasure-loving The man she n'd''es'
Martin by name Is a satisfactory oNai"P "
ured urbanity. He has money; ana 'nouem sV'N
a. waking for himself a reputation Ill the no" W
Corrmons where he naturally spends most oi Ms
EVENINGS These regular absences throw 0''""
n On bor own resources. and she does not
nhr.o bor freedom as Dodo did. Her worst iau'
,s soIf-indulrence and her most complete Su'ie"
der to selAshnoss occurs shortly peio'' 49,
n,o,e reformation: ii was the darhHeSS "
codes the dawn Her carly education Ma" -
r.c,ed nv a prim little German fraulelh 10 "
che rretended to he deeply devoted. NOW Jus
ell, "a on the point OF playing an ATTRACTIVE o'o
4, some private thcatricals. news comes i ~
home in the country that the iraule"' - S
ouslv I'LL and If her old pupil wishes 10 see ~"
80 o' ,,S, came AT once Stella ignores the tele-
uror, which is followed at short interval "' q"
o,hor announcing the little German woman ue''"'
gu strives 10 conceal the facts from her NUS
,ord Int is forced finally to confess. ms con-
fession coming about the same time 'ha' n'' ~
FAINT son is seized with mortal Illness Il 'o "''
stem toward her change of heart. her ie"0,'P.v"
&c complctcd when the child dies. Stahuins ny NV
little grave she felt that a new soul hau 'o, "
- ord n those that stood about her It's raoiahCe
IS ,,eible i'm her face" This is the touch Oh
.orrow' 10 which reference is made In the u,'e'
.rba chronicles OF Martin Hewitt. by Arthur
Morrison suffer by reason OF twoiolu Voi'p
ole a
mr. Dove's Sherlock Holmes. and thereby lack
~ .-asbness without which detective stories
NAV hone 10 be sucoessful in the second place 'hes
.,ffsr ny COMPARISON with the authors previous Noi
ume Tales of Mean Streets. coNecuoh Vi "'''
sketches which bears the unmis'aKap'e man "
or,ganalitv one cannot resist inquiring why the
snthor of these striking tales the creator OF
-. ho,,d soil his artistic reputation for the mere
Injury Of competing with Dr. Doyle in heio IN "'oh
the elder writer was clearly the master however, "
cannot be denied that Martin Hewitt Is cIeNe' uo
tectjve his ingenuity in ferretlng out d cie" - ga
,raordnarv lie notices everything that every o
disc fails to notice and ne invariably notes the risht
,h,ngs Thus when Mr.. Kingscote IS mysteriousN
murdered in his own dra wingroom. and the ola gar
dener Is arrested suspicion. Hewitt knows '''s'.
iyelv that the old man had no share IN 'he "aeeu'
Hewitt claims that his skill is due solely 10 MS eA
ercise Of his faculty of common-sense' out 'ne
uous reader cannot resist the temptation OF beAevhs
.. oxan,ne tho nanels in Mrs. Claytons cheap lous-
,rohouse Kincscote had once lived In THESE chan-
bsrs. he suddenly became rich ana hireu d mouse Vi
hisown Then one night two mysterious persons pc
con ed themselves AT Mrs. Claytons uooI anu ".''
Rte old room The next morning they left ana "he'
+b landady went upstairs TO set things 10 rights she
,o,pd thar the eccentric pair had pulled all the vans
co,jng down and had carefully spntereo every pa'e
The next night Kngscote was murdered a co'"''-
dance" cries the ingenious reader crew. ie'o''
NJ Hewitt and forthwith picks up hAho'ui VI
nlners and fits them together till the complete pdie'
,ies before his friends astonished gaze me" nc
due attention TO peculiar anger hole sVNneo WITH
nuttv recalls a mysterious diamond robbery scIu'i"
,zes bent nail which finds in kingscotes drawer
ond Immediately concludes that the murderer '"'"e
,s challitt; that this same person was 'he iH"ous
d,omond thief: that Kingscotes sudden prosperity
uas due 70 his having found these diamonds III inc
r.oo,,pe Of Mrs Clayton's room etc. W men d
detective falls into the hands of noveiis' 'nere Is
- - the conclusions he is able 10 draw from the
most ;r,Aing circumstances. There are h'e o'.ei
tales in the volume. OF which the one just a''"'
a fair sample. a under tho
.,., ..rhe Youth Of Parnassus. and Other STORIES
ond ~ these the best by far is the seventh "icI
&c called 'Idyl." although even mere the Poi'' -
view is annoyngly English. However, NiSS i'di
has the negative merit Of being awe anu W " VIZ
Gree tvpical of certain easily recognizable sort vi
Aar,can GIRL She is pert Complementary curl
os Without reference TO material. and she Is at
tractive Matthew Craik. on the other hand IS a
simple oxford tutor whose life Is. devoted 10 inc
study OF the early philosophers OF ASIA MINOR ne
lived alone was wasting his youth among poohS'
and had no commerce with everything that Is
light and amiabe in existence" CralK met MISS
Iarob q. q garden party in oxford: he did not want
IN meet any one: he preferred the society OF MS
Asiatic philosophers TO that OF young ladles' out
he screwed up his courage and went 10 the party
and he fell an easy prey 10 Miss Lambs oahdish-
rnents In the popular phrase she drew him out
she nut him at his ease; she professed the great
est interest in his book. Life and Thought IN
Earlv Asia Minor" And Craik was hattered, ana
hurried like an old when his ear is scratched
and came about near as possible TO raining III
love with the dashing Miss Lamb The hour OF
awakening came when he discovered that ne was
NOT as he had innocently thought a special favor
tie of the young ladys. but one among many
others She liked his book. she liked dozens
besides Flattery her chosen method OF nli'a-
ton The tale is brief and well written dnd' un-
like the others. has an air of actually Inc ute
story THE Youth Of Parnassus," is poor effort
,,h,cb has for its theme the gradual conversion Of
an American youth 10 Roman Catholicism under
the influence of the historical and poetic associa-
tions of oxford.
Facts In plenty. and evidences Of conscientious
literary workmanship. are 10 be found on every
page Of Mr. Alvin Francis Sanborns "Moodys
Lodging House and Other Tenement Sketches.
The title sufficiently explains the field of the au-
thor's Investigations. and il remains only 10 note
that he has confined his attention TO the lodging
houses and tenements OF Boston. These ne knows
thoroughly. having acquired his Information ny
personal inquiry and by actual contact and as
ISOLATION with the good-natured neer-do-wells OF
whose tragic-comic lives he has chosen 10 be the
historian. Mr.. Sanborn's methods remind us. by
contrast. Of certain writer who. finding II neces-
sary to include a sketch Of Stun life In volume of
metropolitan sketches. took a leisurely walk one
day through the soiled parts Of the metropolis
known as the slums. He guided his well polished
boots carefully the dirty streets. and pulled
his coat tails fastidously out of reach Of the
ing throngs. lie noted local color. and wrote his
sketch which accepted by those who knew