New-York tribune., 1898-10-30
FICTION.
MR.. MFRRIMANs NOVEL OF PBlLAN-
THROPY AND CRIME.

decmo ID s4. Harper & Brothers
THE BATTLE OF TIE STRONG; Romano co ~
Two Kingdoms. BY Gilbert Parker Duoo'''H'''
pp. 466. Houghton. Mifihn COZ
TONY bFM cA TSGklnsy Boy william ny 'S
Duodaciino. pp 20 Henry Holt 30.
MORE CARGoEs. BY W. W Jacobs Duodec,m~
Up. 23l Frederick s Stokes Company
Current events in England lend an intcr'7t 10
Mr. Merriman's now novel, which IS not stf'ctiy
germane to his purpose. He writes ch'"h! 10
anuse At all events, the chief merit oi h'
fiction is that it is amusing But '"u'"
Corner is also document pat to me anu III
those publr-spirited Englishmen VINO ar ~
ing to direct legislation into the dark corners o,
some modern p0tteres where poisonous f'oc'
esses are In constant use with very &c" oo-
s,acIcs placed in taa way OF their dcad!! eHec'
upon the operator. Facts, Of course, are "hat
.ho roforn1ors want first, but while We G'pfe-
eato the merely sociological novel, me Iypfiu
story which is haIf tract, We do not pletehu
IN deuv that fiction can sometimes help along
The reformer Ly putting some Of his aiGun h'S
-, telling rorn Thus "Rodens Corner, when
holds the attention ike any frivolous tale OF IN
trirue also caves a vivid impression OF the
hsrin that is done 10y manufacturers VINO '~luc
th.ii profits more than they Na'ue me iNVH u
their men The events Of the mover cchN'
around q certain stuff known as hI"Isd"''e'
which Is indispensable to the makers ol ccI'"'h
l.;,ie n nau.r II an be manufao ,urod by
harmless process al one price. BY another
nroccss SLOWLY but surely fatal 70 the operator,
!. can be made at another and much lower price,
TIL. philanthropists who 'ndcaNor 10 save the
unbanny workmen in the dishonest shops pay
into tho hands Of he biggest rascal in 'he "hoie
nalcanjtc trade, and Tony Cornish, the laSI-
ionatle Young man who has started the leiorih'
finds himself at last secretly oniistcd III Ciu-
sadc against this criminal The t'c oi 'n'
novel is descriptive Of the thihG he hsh'S'
Roden's .orner in malgamte just such Il coh'
trol over q specific product as We "ltheSs va
sionaliy ia the grain markets ot hfheiico'
There arc several motives In the story. 1HFio
Is tho exposure Of the wiek kcd mahuIac'ui'r "
T.. a,cor,uiiehcd. th.r is fashionable philan-
: tbIopy 10 be unVeiled-th" fashlohape pn''an-
,h,orv which The author thinks he knows all
+ aLCut-and of course there IS thc rove Hl'ti'9"
Mr. Merriman has treated the manufacturer We
,hirl, with some cleverness. Philanthropy,
fashionable or otherwise, he leaves just where
! he found Il. not in the least damaged ny HIS
cheap cynicism ard Hrpancy. The love interest,"
he handles best Of all That IS TO say oui du
/ .bor ..lls 9 love story with good dramatic cHect'
: No cannot say that his insight into human
/ ,a,uro ie very deep We follow the absorbing
,Io+ with The livclic2t interest, but we lghole
! the authors sapient observations on ioVe anu
rfo He knows little about either "Neh ~
comes to looking beneath the surface iie "A
| Zoo much occupied with his favorite pasuihe u
/ t,,oD.iup shallow epgrams. skip the epgraihs
.boucb that is difficult to do since MI -hei
/ ,.,,,o, ie rroud Of them and introduces tiein oh
.,oo,r- .v,rv page-and you will be vastly enter
,.ino1 With all his faults this author mas 'iio
! ,or,ativo cift the power TO devise gooo sltua-
.io, ord - work il out to an exciting cnHaA'
,pn5,,.s corner" is a superficial book but II Is
decidedly rcadable.
~, p.,lor has written n "rhe Eatt' or the
c,ro,,,," = most worthy, digniied ana careiuiiy
s.udicd story. The scene is set n inc Ciainei
1s,arde chiefly in jersey in the ml'st OF
romantic people and picturesque tra'I'Iohs' i"o
,.;,d ;e that of a hundred years ago Wheh
. ho,yocr ENGLAND aud France and the up
! boaval of the Revolution Furnished ohni'sS op
rortunit;ce 20 the novelist Mr. Parher H'''
! ,eod those opportunities win eAcclehe 'uNo
mont lIo has chosen 10 write not hs'oilc"i
rov.l tut a novel Of character developer o'
dieto,ted through the strange chances ol 'he
time The, nero is real IN so far as an liieiueh'
in an almost forgotten jersey man $ career
served 10 suggest his character ana MS ia'e'
He is n young naval officer III the hhSIlsh Sei
,i,o man whose ambition runs away with his
sense Of honor and obscurcs more IMAM one ""o
,,ali,v or q fiery nature Through an extraor-
dinary but not Impossible Nhim o. lOi'uhe
,,,l,.d.n, - thrown into his grasp, and in the
process Of sezing It he deserts the young WIG
no has secretly ,narried N Jersey and commits
hT f.ir