The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1898-10-09

"Zack" turns from the sordid, brutal, de-
I grading scenes of life in Australia to sun
| ny Italy, and gives us story of it's hot
| passion palpitating in the nervous heat In
the "Red-Haired Mans Dream the author
| begins in comedy and deepenS into trag-
| gedy. Here we learn that the author Is
| never forgetful that she Is dealing with
| living, pulsing, human hearts. This story
| is different from any other in the book,
| and it proves the power of the author to
| portray tempted harried soul in the grip
! of tempestuous passion. The story Is de-
| veloped with care and skill and evinces
| the authors power to feel and give eX-
preston to the grand passion, its wooing
| tenderness, and its terrible power in
| moulding the destinies of men. So earnest
| and intent and serious Is the author that
| her occasional attempts at humor are but
| grim affairs and fail utterly to cause even
| a rift in the over-shadowing gloom Jess
| is a tender beautiful creation who has
known only the hard facts of life when
love came to her eventually the experience
| of its sweetness only caused her TO eX-
| claim ut is a dram, desoiate, dece1v-
| ing dream" But there comes time to
most men and women who have lived,
when '1ife is too real for dreams" as the
| d-Haired man said, and Dreams are
| hell"
But 1t is when "Zack" turns to the
scenes of her own picturesque Devon that
writer With the beginning of The
Storm when the book is nearly three
fourths finished, we discern the full real
stc force of her imagination She is
genuine daughter of Devonshire, and In
depicting the life of which she is a part,
she has surely found her true place. These
| stories are told in the Devonshire vernacu-
| lar and while it Is difficult TO the unac-
| customed reader, he, nevertheless reads as
| one possessed and when the stories are
fao1 hot TNn
| the sway of a masterhand 1.-THE Storm
| cat the Stroke of the Hour" and Gravel
| ing joe are possibly the best stories In
| the book Travelling Joe is a boy of about
nine years old, small. wien and partly
paralyzed He was lying in a truckle-bed
| watching his old Grandfer peeling
potatoes To the boy lying there with the
| spirit of adventure strong within his heart,
but his life bounded by the four walls of
the small kitchen, the thought 81 heaven
was of piercing interest to him. Grandfer
Fam said 'thet ha didn't want no praicher
TO teach him tina way tn 'eaven; zalvation
WIZ a kooris thing, and like cream, let it
alone and twid come to zee; meddle ana
praying widnt fetch it, An uncle OF lit
tie Joes comes home from America and as
the bows heart swells with thoughts of the
far away land he conides to his uncle
that when he gets to heaven that 81 shall
do a. sight o. travelling when 1 gets up
Their" "Dear Laurd' shall gay, i knows
what rasting ba like, and now wild dearly
like tn ba doing" With the heart'essness
of a cruel man this uncle takes away by
a few words the childs faith and he re-
niles "T,here amt no such place as 'eaNen,
Joe it's all darned rot-bunkum, as us
saws out in the states Poor little Trav-
cling Joe pines away after this. Granter,
he said, edo zee reckon thet they knows
more about 'eaven over tn Meriky than
they does yhere?'
The last stories in the volume are all
very short, yet each one seems TO be
masterpiece Mere vignettes yet so pow
erful and tense is their portrayal of the
great human heart that no eye could per-
use them undimmed The final one Dave"
Is a fitting close. and teaches in forceful
way the lesson "Zack' would impress upon
every heart and the fact she is proud to
prove-the upward tending or doWn-trou-
den crushed spirits
Poor Dave was so possessed with passion
for drink that in his wooing he confessed,
Sweetheart it's the drink I'm afraid of;
twill have me wan day like did my vather
and brothers afore me-.
But I bain't afraid! I might be cruel
hard on zee, lass" he said pressing her
hands tight against his broad chest. "A
man can't answer for hssulf when the
drinks upon him.
Her dark grey eyes filed with tears.
But I ha'n't afeard, Dave, she reiterat-
ed I hain't afeard.
He looked at her with great tenderness,
"I dursn't, dear heart dursn't,' he said,
and his voice shook. Later when the de-
sire for drink seethed over him he snatched
his gun and with the purpose of ending
his wretched existence cried, Dog that
ba. dog that ba," he sobbed. mo better
than a dog no better than dng! Sick
with shame and horror he raised his eyes
and fixed them on the moonlit heavens.
srTbere ba sommat in me ABIDE the dog
he said slowly. GAY, begore, I'll live,
game. I'll zee 1t droo. and drawing him
self together he turned his face once more
her lesson. Life is life but life is
also love, for lack has once more demon
strated the truth that
Life with all it yields, of joy and woe,
And hope and fear
Is Just our chance O. the prize of learning
love-"
Mr.. James Monroe has returned from
Washington.
Major w. L. Howell has returned from
Tuscaloosa.
The many friends of Mrs. Ruby Kyle
Beale will be grieved to learn that she is
dangerously i'll at the home of her parents
In Fifth avenue.
St. Agnes Guild will give a carnation
fortune party next Thursday evening in
the rooms in First avenue occupied by the
Young Mems Hebrew association. The
ladies of the Guild hope all their friends
will come and find their fortune in pinks.
The Highland Book club will meet with
Mrs. John w. Tomlinson Thursday morn
ing at 1880 o'clock instead of Wednesday.
The Treble Clef club will meet Tuesday
morning q [ q 20 o'clock at the Conservatism
of Music. Professor Guckenberger urges a
full attendance as the work for the coming
season will be discussed The members
are enthusiastic over the prospects for a
bright season.
The music at the South Side Baptist
church will be unusually attractive at both
services today. Mrs w. c. B. Davis, Mrs
Thomas Hamilton and Mrs. c. H. Nabb are
on the music committee and they will ar