The times., 1898-05-29
A south African WAR story.


"a Trooper of the Empress" Clinton
Ross latest book, is evidently modelled
on the story of the jameson raid 1t Is
a saga rather than a novel, fresh, clean,
stirring, with the inspiring note of a bu-
gle call. 1t contains no long words, no
long sentences, no social problems. 1t
| handles questions of state in the rough
andready way of the soldier and the
lives of men as the man of action handles
them-more by instinct than rule. In the
prologue the author says:
Let men talk and quibble; give me the man
who does things. Let him fail, but let him rise
| from failure.
| The hero of the novel MacIVor Fraser
| is emDhatically a man who does things
| and the teller of the story, his friend John
| Barton, also belongs to this class. Fraser
| is tall, raw-boned, red-headed Scotch
man, with a marvellous gift for managing
men, for daring and for doing. He has
| disgraced himself in India, or so it APP
pears in the eyes of his brother officers,
| by the giving OF a treacherous order un-
| der torture Whether the order was actu-
| ally given by him or by another man un-
! der the same conditions is not known,
even by himself. If the order was given
| IT was given in delirium. Stung TO the
| soul, however, by the thought that he
! may have sent brave men TO their death,
Fraser cuts the service and goes TO South
Africa, where an opportunity is given him
TO retrieve himself With unusual bold
ness, the author leaves the question,
whether or not the story of his disgrace in
India was true, unsettled to the last. Nei-
ther Fraser, his friend nor the reader
ever finds out whether the order was ac-
tually given by him or not. The point is
that whatever may have been his past, he
has vindicated the name Of Fraser of
Glencoe by his service to the empire in
South Africa. That is the main idea Of
the novel.
Considered a political study, how
ever, the sorry has another point. The
author frankly takes the ground that
anything done for the sake of the en-
pire is justifiable. So far as he has an
object in writing the book, the object is
this. He declares through the mouth of
Fraser, in one of that soldiers infrequent
speeches, that the natural Anglo-Saxon
territorial instinct is to be followed with
confidence. Fraser takes possession of
Nitara, a dubious South African terri
tory claimed by the Beers, because he
sees that without English rule Nitara
will be constant source Of international
trouble and perpleXity. He has no au-
thority for this bold action; he is opposed
strongly by one Of the richest millonaires
"
is interested in an English land compa-
ny; he merely does what, in his opinion,
is the proper thing to do. and on the ap-
pearance of Queens officer hands the
captured territory over TO him. And all
this he does. knowing that as he express
es il before the fight, his action means
utter failure or partial success. He is,
as the author says. one of those men who
must be either fools or heroes. His ac-
ton is summed up in the words of Bar
ton just after the taking of the town of
Victoria:
At the dawn We were still riding on, frightins
away now and then Boer scout, who rushed away
carrying the news. And before US dim and silent,
asking no questions of me. the great
figure Of MacIyor Fraser of Glencoe. And ! re-
allied what his purpose was-how, IN this man,
who had gone through and experienced muCh
was the purpose Of the British empire lie seemed
TO me in those moments scarce human-rather
like some relentless superhUmau force. gTasped
the truth have spoken of we all, however small,
represent in our lives some part OF the divine
purpose-the relentless resistless action which
is for the development OF the universe, which,
believe, is God; the faith which aninates to
do things; and Fraser of Glencoe had more Of
that than the rest Of US.
He held Nitara that moment by the purest-in-
deed, the most extraordinary-effro and he
held 1t for England a trust; if he had dcfed |
the law and put himself above it by this dash |
across the border, still there rhyme and
son for il all in the simple statement For Eng
land"
There IS third motive In the book-the |
curious, mystical connection between he |
ro and heroine. The deeper meanings Of |
this psychological phenomenon are not |
worked oet elaborately; the circumstance |
is simply mentioned, as any friend of the |
hero and heroine might mention it, as a |
thing inexplicable but true. Not the least |
mastery piece OF character drawing is |
the portrayal Of the Portuguese Jew. Tir- |
win. This type of financial speculator |
has rarely been drawn IN so distinct a |
fashion. The novel as a whole is well |
worth reading, both for its clearness of |
style and dash and vigor of movement
one feels the wind of the yeldt as it blows |
in the faces of the horsemen. and sees
the British flag as II waves over Victoria !
and for the frank exposition which it
seems TO give of the British territorial ag- |
gresson. Mr. Ross has the power of
making this man Fraser a living breath
ing entity, and one cannot help admiring
his coolness, his daring and his devotion
10 the cause of the empire, whatever one
may think of his theory. Rarely has any
historical novel been written which told
so much in SO few pages.
(New York: Appleton & Co. Washing
ton: All booksellers. SD