The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1899-11-04

or lonely. LAS the wet ks went on
trailing aong as slowly ne wounded
snak 8. as the wool frightened on the
sheep. and the hair hung lower on the
shoulders OF the herdsmen'- an / that IL
phras'ng worth the doing. by the way
and ever! thing grew longer but money,
ne turned more and more to his vision.
airy feminine presence which haunted
the place. That exsltation OF feninin.
ify in the desert, that subtitle, tantaliz.
ing sug sestion Of WON ms presence
conjured up by an old glove and few
yards OF white muslin. IL one OF the
most skilful things in that ekillful story,
and recalls the manner Ia wbiuh Mau.
pass Int used to achieve effects Of that
kind, absolutely impalpable. yet 80 close
and physical that they penetrate one at
every pore. The tale reaches it's climax
when Brown" learns that this won 9
brother, his immediate predecessor at
the Edge OF Things' went crazy after
the manner OF sheep hsrdsrs, and used
TO drop on his knees and crop the sr SO
with his sheep. Brown" himself is
saved from similar fate by an old col.
lege chum and Shakspere- reading
Frenchman who was overeeer at neigh
boring ranch. The story is evenly
worked up from every side, the t.xturs
is close and firm, not point has been
elighted and every play scores. The
Frenchman contributes nicely to the
color Of the thing. the grotesqu com.
p1rison between tbs idyl.ic shepherds OF
Arcadia. garland decked and piping un.
der soft skies and by peaceful streams.
and these acorcbed, shaggy, vacant eyed
sheep keepers Of the free graes country
is piece Of ironic by play that amounts
to artistic cruelty. but art is generally
cruel, and Mrs P.atties almost always
90.
A new translation OF Maupaseant's
Fort CONNIE Ia Mott" is made by q
gentleman with the exotic name. Teofi'o
Comba. and is an unusually satisfactory
piece Of work as transsl atoms 90, with
not few Of the commendab!e features
OF Mr.. Lafcadio Hesra's efforts 10 trans
lating French fiction. French fiction
maequerading in English phraseology
always reminds one OF an English actress
say that gifted but mat, only artisr, Mre.
Kendall. disporting herself as "Frou-
Frou" or "Denise" or "Manon Lescaut.'
There lie apt to be soneihing q triAs
heavy about it, trife brut que, q trifie
too direct, ard the whole is apt TO re-
ssmble an attempt to filagree 10 brol re.
OF all the French masters. with the
possible exception OF Gautitr, mono is
more difh -ult to render into English
than Maupsssant. The two mediums Of
expression are 80 es eL TALLY different
that it is almost like transslstiug the
odor OF violets into speech. The trsrs.
lator's choice is happy one. 1t 10 q
question as TO just how much Of Mau.
PEASANT Is possible or desirable 10 EnR.
lish, but no one who is inclined to take
seriously can have any valid
objections to Fort CONNIE La Mort"
In short, while there is no niece eslty /,
introduce 1t tito the boarding school
curriculum, 1t is not one Of those novels
which. as Mrs. Phelps. Waro once primiy
put it. give more pain by their indeli.
cacy than their art gives pleasure"
the book is one OF Mar-
PEASANTS best. However uncertain his
ater work may have been. in "Notre
Occur" and Fort CONNIE La Mort" he