Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-05-01


matter how dear? He falls to appreciate
how a woman refined. tender. sensitive
might loathe herself for. and dread the
dawnlng OF a brighter day; how she
might even deny the new love in her
longing 10 be true to the dead husband |
In the letter. IL not the spirit. 1t Is such |
a warning OF nature against artihcial re-
strictions which Miss Magruder depicts.
Phillip Drewry. the hero. we meet re-
f,,sing 10 act upon an admonition 10
marry. He declares that his heart Is
preoccupied by--a creature OF The ina
gtnatfon, This fascinating. but elusive
lady he believes to have prototype IN
the flesh whom he viii recognize. ana
for whom he is waiting. Time goes on
and he meets her. But, alasl 1t Is at the
wedding of another fellow, and sha
figures as the bride OF the heros pest
friend. phillip realizes that this Is the
woman for whom he has waited put
that she is not for him. And So with
his secret locked in his own breast. ne
decamps for Africa; there 10 pohoer OH
what might have BEEN.
Meanwhile, his friends are judged py
the world to b4 happy couple put do
time goes on the marriage does not prove
10 be ideal. The husband IS gehtlenianis
and
tics than in his refined, serious wife, VINO
is nevertheless, happy. although her
life Is not what she had dreamed OF. one
feels that the awakening must come
but this they are spared, for the nus
hapd "a killed in a fox-hunt. His widow,
after the manner of her kind, deifes his
memory. In dying. he tells her 10 rely
unon phillip Drewry, his dearest friehd'
II is nearly two years before Phlihp re-
Turns from Africa, however. after eA-
nlorations which render him famous
rhen for the first time, he learns or MS
| sacred trust and hastens to assume H.
| nc daterrnines to win. II 1t be possible,
| this embodiment of his dreams, though
| not Understanding the tenacity ot
purpose of a woman governed py SEM
ment. He finally leads her TO leel tha.
| sham feeling is not to be tolerated' tna'
she is cheating herself In VoWins aile-
| glance to one man dead WINE io',is
onotber living. and that in obeying the
| dictates of her heart she Is peihs uu' ~
the best in herself.
TWO PRISONERS. By Thomas Nelson
| page. Publisher, r. III. Russell: New
York. ~
This little story first appeared In Har-
| per's Young People some months Since
! publishers that 1t makes its bow TO inc
| public in its present amplified form. rms
| time the artist, who has so well described
life i'm Virginia in ante-bellum days; VINO
has moved us to laughter at the VagarleS
of the happy negro. and to tears at the me-
| ero's devotion 10 his master; whose men
| are brave and leal; whose women are
| tender and true, and whose loVe-storles
are perfect idylls. has entered di1ereh'
| al n q o.
mands. Not every story-teller possess
ing the divine spark Of genius can por-
tray child nature: but this DIR. Page mas
done. with a pathos all his own.
The two prisoners are cagec bird ano
n crippled child. both longing for free
dom. The heroine is Molly, whose nttl'
broken body keeps her a prisoner In 9
garnet. dependent upon the fluctuatlng az
tentions OF a woman who gets drunk Inc
bird which she watches beating Its wings
at q window over the way, Is her felloW
sufferer. This small waif has only "Th'
Arabian Nights and pilgrims Pro
gress" for mental food. From these sh'
weaves a fantastic world, peopled by
fairies. genii and pilgrims, and strongly II
contrast with her sorI lid surroundings
Hers Is a little heart, longing for some
thing to love and aching for some one I,
understand its needs-some one TO nj
the place of the mother, who is but
. | beautiful dream.
From her lonely window she watches
child who seems TO her q veritable prin
cess. an only child called Mildred, who
in reality. is lonely too. Midreds pc
dog one day strays to Molly's poor home
with its mistress in full chase. The SUI
prise on the part of one child tnat sue
want can exist, her eagerness to help, an
: the revelation she is 10 her less fortunat
companion are wildly set forth.
; The situations are all evolved froI
natural and not strained conditions. TIL
story itself is simple and tender. IL doe
not deal with complex emotions or higi
n flown sentiment, but with the trouble
0 which the world IS full and with Il
goodness of the more fortunate who
:, seek to alleviate suffering, notwithstant
{. ing the opinion OF some 10 the contrary.
@ WOULD ANY MAN? BY Charles Pea
& Dldier, with nine full-page illustr
o lions by the author. Published by WI
d llams e. wilkins
d This story, which shows a good pic
/. but very little individuality Of style. en-
(, in 1.-THE Lady or the Tiger" fashion-th
?, IS. TO say, 1t leaves the reader 10 deci
II for himself whether or not the love
IL ultimately adjusted their difficulties al
) lived happily ever afterwards. y
2 heroine murders one NHOii sAlt SuPPoS
d 10 be her father. He was seeking
l. besmirch the memory Of the girls de
.e mother, in order to avail himself Of I
n benefits of a will After the crime I
IS heroine moves TO New York and pursu
her art studies. No suspicion points
her as the perpetrator of the crime.
the coroner's jury brings in verdict
II suicide Whether or not the nader
u conscience actually hurt her we
: not know, but as a painter she makes
u, ~ great success, and as philanthrop
, she certainly atones, in large degr
y, for her misdeed. She meets the conve
~ tional hero, who writes stories. and In
- acquaintance rapidly ripens into 10
a When the man finally declares that
80 cannot live without her, ct cetera,
- admits that she loves him.
- - states that there are reasons why II
=, cannot marry He swears fidelity in
az face Of every obstacle. and she refu
- to disclose the secret or her lie.
he finally, whether wisely or unwseiy,
tells her lover of the homicide. lays
st | the facts and extenuatinG circumstan
he before him, and asks whether he or {
ut other man would wed a woman W
in such a record behind her. Here
We pretty little volume ends in concluded
nd our-next style. without the hero.s a
davit or reply. And so your imaglnat
a has full scope 10 wind up the affair
nd suits your fancy.
he There are many good features In
ry story, and it is above the average w
En- of fiction, but at times we feel that
author has dropped into rather ha
tn neyed style OF expression. which la
Jar "snap' and vigor.
s. Mr. Didier has illustrated his own We
e. and what is more, he has done II exec
nj, ingly we'll Some Of his pictures are