The Portland daily press., 1898-09-27

publication. noted for it's keenly critical
acumen. has a pleasant word of praise for
Mr.. Steyonss book of which L have been
speaking.
We are always sure of an intellectual
treatwhen somebody translates one OF Maui
rus Jokai's novels, especially II ne does 1t
well; and great enjoyment is to be hadsby
even the jaded reader OF. fiction III MIDST
the Wild Carpathians, which is cons1d-
cred by many the best of Jokai's great
historical romances The work IS put
into English by Mr.. r. Nisbet Balm from
the first hungarian edition. "The scene
of the story" writes. the translator in his
introduction, sis laid among the virgin
forests and inaccessible mountains OF
eventeenth-century Pennsylvania, where
a proud and valiant feudal nobility still
maintains a precarious independence long
after the parent state of Hungary had
become Turkish province. We are
transported into semi-heroic, semi-bar-
barous borderland between the Fast and
Present, where Mediaevalism has found
a last retreat, and the civilization OF the
East and West contend or coalesce'
Bizarre, gorgeous and picturesque forms
fit before us-ruds feudal magnates .and
refined Michiavellian intriguers; superb
Turkish pashas and ferocious MOORISH
bandits; noble, high-minded ladies' ana
tigrish odalisks; saturnine Hungarian
heydukes, superstitious Wallackian peas
ants, savage Seekers, and scarcely
human Tartars. The plot too is in Keep
ing with the vivid coloring and magnih-
cent scenery of the story"
And yet it is all true to the historical
tradition of Transylvania, than which
there is nothing more dramatic, unusual
and STARTLING. All the characters which
appear upon the scene are SO perfectly
drawn, SO wildly depicted that they do
not seem like creations Of tho artists
brain, but living beings, each one SO IN
dividual, SO striking and moving so rap
idly through tremendous series OF events
that it is to,us for the time gorgeous
and brilliant and soul-stirring reality.
Jokai' s..marvellous creation of Azrael the
soulless and irresistible Turkish odalisk,
and the wonderful fairy palace construct
ed by Corsar Beg on the summit OF the
wild Carpathiasn, for this sinuous Ciroe,
and her pet panther, would alone stamp
this book as work of genius; and the
description of the burning coal mine. the
Neva floods, snow bridges, lakes, ava
lanches and the fantastic scenery Of the
DEVILS Garden are like a series OF won
derful pictures, the work of master.
"The Critic" tells us that DR.. Jokai
has been called 1.-THE Shakespeare Of Hun
gary" and that he has published in fifty
years three hundred and fifty novels.
dramas, and miscellaneous works. not to
mention innumerable articles for the
press that owes its freedom chiefly to him,
and the September number of this Review
contains an excellent portrait OF the
famous writer, and an extremely interest
ing set of his life and works. This time
Jokai's American publishers are Messrs
L. G. Page g Company.
The same house has already issued sew
eral other volumes and an attractive list
of autumn publications.; notably; To
Arms! by Andrew Balfour; A Iowa
BILE Crank by Barbara Yechton; The
Sleeping Beauty by Marthat Baker
Dunn The Regeneration of Miss Soma
PORE; and Poems of American Patriot
ism selected by r. L. Paget.