The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-03-27

Students Edition of AiOtIey,s .!ESisc
of the Dutch Republicy-A Ro-
nance OF the Greek War of In
dependence water CoIor
Painting" and ''The Painter ia
elisa Botany for Students.
1.-THE Beth Book" is a very plump
volume, in moderately fine type, with
a plain and serviceable binding, we'll
calculated to stand the hard usage of
a railway journey Whoever the read
er, it may almost be warranted not to
give out before the journeys end The
above qualities may seem to be only
indirectly related to literature, but we
conceive, nevertheless, that it is on
such merits as these, if at all, that
Nine. Sarah Grand's latest work will
find favor in the eyes of the public
When all is said and done, it certainly
is very pretty amount of paper and
print for the money. If what the in
tending purchaser desires his money
to buy, however, should happen to be
literary art. the bargain will not be
such a satisfactory one
The book deals eXhaustively with
some twenty years of the life of Eliza
beth Caldwell, who in time be-
comes Elizabeth Caldwell Mac
lure. The first chapter describes
at length the domestic manners
Of the Caldwells before Elizabeth's
birth. Mr.. Caldwell slanged his
wife, who, in her turn, nagged her hus-
band faithfully, yet these were gentle
folk. The child Beth is belligerent and
interesting. She thinks for herself and
says what she chooses and survives a
harum-scarum childhood, in which her
manners were as bad as possible and
her morals so much neglected that only
the inherent hardness of childhood
enables her to grow up without cor
ruption, and she energies an interest
ing, sensitive, refined girl, in whose
career one feels one may take a rea-
sonable amount Of pleasure. This bud
ding interest her creator promptly nips
in the bud by marrying her ait a very
tender age to a brute Of a man of the
impossible variety only found in Brit
1sh novels. This person opens her let
tiers, SWearS at her because her for
tune Is not what he supposed it to
be. takes delight in filling her unwiIl-
ing ears with the most unpleasant
stories he knows, and conducts himself
In general as candidate for a horse
whipping should do. Naturally, Mrs.
Maclure is not happy, and she consoles
herself for many things by writing
stories in a secret room which she
has discovered in the attic, and later
by speaking in public on the wrongs
OF woman-a subject on which it car
not be denied she is fully competent to
pass as authority. In the end she is
allowed to separate from her husband.
inherit a little money and go to house
keeping in charming country cot
tage, and one would be glad to leave
her there in peace if Nine. Grand had
rot unkindly pointed out the advent
Of another man, whose appearance is,
to say the least, ill-timed, since there
seems to be no convenient method
short Of cold poison by which to rid
the book Of DR.. Mcclure
The style in which the tale is writ
ten Is wordy to the last degree, and
very rare indeed are touches Of wit
such as frequently enlivened the
wastes of 1.-THE Heavenly Twins" We
know, because Nine. Grand has told
us, that novels should have a pur-
pose. 1t is difficult, however, to ascer-
tain just what good end 1.-The Beth
Book" serves. The author has stated
since the book appeared that she wrote
it to show that the personal develop
ment Of woman who marries a brutal
man is hopelessly crippled, and that
she suffers morally from contact with
his individuality. her own never at
tanning the fair heights it might have
| reached. This seems an automatic
truth. 1t has been said before You
cannot touch pitch without being de-
filed" is a brief proposition to be ex-
| panded into several hundred Thousand
words, but one must acknowledge that
much ingenuity has been expended in
the process. The result, however, re-