The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-12-31
VIEW sooKa
Brief Reviews Of Important and Hntsrestins
New Publication.

New Publications.
A book that will find many readers. and de-
light them when they have been found. II Mr..
Joseph A. Altsheler's story Of the war Of 1912.
"A Herald OF the West" ID. Appleton a Co.L
Historical romances are sometimes more In
s~tructivo than entertaining. which may not be
overwhelmingly TO their discredlk though ex-
p~erience has % that II is not amiss for .
story OF the sort 10 be instructive and enter
tanning both. Some historical romances. again.
advancing upon this idea. are not entertaining
and also not instructive. and this IL q doubtful
negative combination (which has few dlsln-
terested apoloRists.
Mr.. Altsheler has certain abilities which 70
10 make a story readable. He has notably good
powers Of description. which he here freely ox-
ercises, and his accounts OF such matters as the
fight between the United States frigate Presl-
dent and the British corvette Little Belt 1.-THE
nrst two-sided aggression OF the war; the TAX
ing and burning OF Washington and the battle
OF New Orleans are vivid and strong. quite
taking one By the throat, az the phrase II, 10
IL no more than reasonable to say that the his
torical romance cannot lose It's popularity 30
long a. 10 II as well don't az Mr.. Altsheler
does IL.
Al regards this story. It's opening is not the
best part Of it; here the interest lags q little.
though the picture OF the newly founded city
Of w~ashinRton-a CITY that, wal not at all
beautiful In It's beglnnings-hss It's Instructive
value. The reader will NOT consider Ms time
lost AZ he makest the acquaintance OF the rnuohs
troubled President Madison. attends an ALE
night Cabinet meeting, and encounters John
Randolph riding cynically through the mud In
the fog Of the early morning.
Tourists out for the luxuriesofAiong-establ
lished civilization. looking for architecture an9
moss and consecrated story. eager for picture
galleries. expectant OF oathedrals. hoping to BE-
beguilded by the administration OF that ordet
Of high genius which devotes itself to the pro-
vision OF good dinners. were not TO be found In
any great numbers stagecoaching among the
cities OF the infant American republic Of the
year 1911; and Mr.. Altshelers account Of Q
stagecoach journey from Washington to New
York In the year named does not refect that
variety Of circumstantial interest which at
tended upon stagecoaohing In certain other
parts Of the world. 1t would be the be-
trayal OF realism, q profound insincerity
and an exhibition Of !extrayagans and
reckless fancy II IL did. One cannot help
thinking Of those old American gtagecoacheS
that they must themselves have lacked cons
ventional pic-turesdueness: they must have
been monumental and lean. and certainly
they carried no one-eyed bagmen and no old
ladies weighted down with brown paper par
cells who dropped their his and their parcels In
discriminatory and so copiously that the fall Of
these amounted - = shower. Mr.. AltsheleH
does not run tie stagecoach OF Dickens be-
tween Washington and New York. He has the
fortitude not to be a borrower, and the journey
that he describes Is probably very much OF Q
reflex OF the journey that was made.
What there was salient and characteristic In
Baltimore and Philadelphia-the sailors. the
markets, the brick houses. Independence Hall
and Carpenters Hall. the street lamps which
burned bene1cently and beautifully. regardless
OF expense-these things Mr.. Altsheler emu
merates. and we feel that they make the pho
tograph Of truth; nor does he deprive us in Bal
timore OF those POSSESSIONS reasonable sources
OF our pleasure and our pride. the oysters
and the terrapins and the ducks. To be sure.
he does not make it known specifically that
his travellers treated themselves In Baltimore
to that delectable form OF the prepared oyster
known as the Baltimore broil. or that during
their fortunate sojourn in that subsequently
monumental city they were delightfully."- awak-
ened In the morning by the DEMONSTRATING
sounds attendant upon the preparation OF
Maryland biscuits. All these things. however.
are readily to be Rrasped by the instructed
imagination OF the reader as he goes along.
and we hasten to say that 1t is not for a mo-
ment to be thought of this historian and story
teller that he Is deficient in suggestion and
color or that he does not tell enough.
The adventures Of the coach In New Jersey
are especially characteristic and vivid. Agreat
| storm drenches and belabors the travellers.
the axle OF the coach breaks in the consequent
mud. and the wayfarers. red to their necks
with the friendly and adhesive soil. find in q
farmhouse a supper OF bacon and hot bread
and coffee and apple sauce. supplemented by a
vast jug bubbling over with a potent and afo-
matte JOY. The hero. who is a Kentuckian. does
not scorn to get n headache. and a portly mer-
chant from Boston. sad OF visaGe. sings a sea
song and reveals tho fact that he fought on tho
Bon Homme Richard. with Commodore Paul
Jones.
Mr.. Altshelers impressions OF New York and
Boston. as those cities were at the time when
the war of 1872 was impending. will hold tho
attention OF the reader. but the force and sweep
OF the story come with the fighting. as they
should do. Here the reader will pay to Mr..
Altsheler the great and deserved compliment
of becoming quite absorbed. The battles Mt
Washington and New Orleans are very efrec-
| lively described.
We must say that we are puzzled a little Ivy
the circumstance that the author causes tho
cannons to shoot lead cannon balls. Some
one shouted to ne to look out for the cannon
balls. and l lodged behind a huge coil Of rope
and knelt down Just as eighteen pounds OF lead
screamed and Kissed over my head and went
on to cool Its rage In the sea beyond u.s. Il
lay behind the mudbank and watched the Eng
fish fire. the sheets Of flame. the puffs of thick
black smoke. the whistling OF the rockets. tho
chuff! chuf! as a 24-pound chunk OF lead
buried itself in our mudbank." We are not at
all sure that we have any right TO be puzzled.
All the cannon balls that we have ever seen
piled up in pyramids ut West Point. tho
Brooklyn Navy Yard. and elsewhere. were
made OF iron. In the Revolution they used
l t-A nnNA III -
cannon balls that were dug up on the Revolu-
tionary battlehelds Of the upper part OF Man
haitian Island they were corroded and eaten
curiously by long ~sojourn under ground. and
were preserved. without regard to their def
cheney In mere beauty, as souvenirs, being
usually employed to hold doors open with. and
they were all Of iron. 1t may be that in 1912