The times., 1898-04-24
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broad frieze continuous shelf. holding sam
pies Of half the pots in the universe, from
Heidelberg beer mug To East Indian water
Jar; and over the doors were grouped punches OF
African arrows, spears, and clubs, and curious
harharic shields: while the center of The room
was occupied by a square table covered with
books and magazines, ash-trays. japanese worries.
and the like. Set in among them an UNI
brella lamp with shade of sealing-waN red.
At intervals about the room smaller tables,
convenient for decanters and crushed ice, and
against the walls facing the piano, wide
diy ans, piled high with silk cushions
And so on, and so on, at intervals.
Whatever crisis of architectural or roman
tic interest happens to be on, the reader
is always requested to stop minute and
look at these interminable rooms or if
not these, others much like them.
There are places in the book which are
really fine. but the places which are not
fine come in so often that they make an
equally strong impression, SO that on fin
ishing the book one thinks not how good
IL Is in spite Of its faults but how good
il might have been if it had not so many
faults. There is something the matter
with Mr.. Smiths genius when, with an
emotional crisis such as that of Caleb and
Betty on his hands with the delightful
figure Of Major Slocomb to daily with,
and possessed of some really fine oppOr-
tunities for minor bits of incident and
characterization, he will stop to fool with
lamp shade of sealing-waX red. Seal
ing-waX red! Spirit of Rudyard Kiping,
+ come over here and teach this man what
glorious material of human nature he has
10 work with, if he only win condescend
to use it,
/ One of the opportunities not fully I'M
proved by Mr. Smith is the character of
the superintendent, Carleton. brainless
( creature Of cOnceited disposition, with an
J unexplained grudge against Sanford. Just
to show what he can do when he attends
To business the author makes Captain Joe
sum Carleton up in this wise:
"Afn't it curious that mans olds him is
wililn' Ter set round all day, KNOWN he don /
know nothin, never larnin'. and yit allus afeard
some Un'll find it outI" Then. the helplcssness
of the man rose in his mind, he would add,
We'll. poor cTitteT, somebody's got ter support
him; guess the guyment's the best paymaster
far him"
Then there is the chapter in which
Sanford, from the top of lighthouse,
watches with spyglass three men
Captain Joe, Caleb West, and another
struggling in the waves beside an over
turned boat. That is a mastery piece Of
description. And there IS \ lit Of comedy
in the page which describes the eXpe-
rience Of Major Slocomb in nursing the
wounded 'longshoremen. But the interest
is not sustained, and the waOle thing is
badly put together Scenes which should
be clear and distinct - reflections in a
mirror come before the minds eye with
the jerky movement of a fractions cine
photographic IT is a pity that Hopkinson
Smith has not made the best of this plot,
because ii is a good plot and deserves
! good treatment. II should have been
! worked out as sldllfully and carefully as
! the group of characters winch cluster
about Colonel Carter, aad with the dra-
matte force and picturesqueness of Tom
. Grogan," and neither OF these things has
been done The inevitable conclusion is
that Mr.. Smith wrote this book AZ a
time when he either had not fully thought
it over, or was thinking about something
else. 1t is cursed with the curse OF Reu-
I ben.
| Washington: Wm. Ballantyne & SOM