The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-01-14

mitted to be the judge.
Where is the short story writer OF to-
day possessing such delightful tact as
this writer Of century agof Our pres
emit writer's are all dogmatical in the Or
dering Of the costumes Of their heroine
and give the reader no choice whatever.
They sometimes leave the material Of her
gown in doubt. as, for instance, where
they describe It as some soft, clinging
stuff but that appears to be due to
their ignorance Of the nomenclature of
textile fabrics and not to tact or modes
ty. And the hero Of today's short story
has never been known to have his sauci-
ness checked by such qualities In the
heroine as sweetness or modesty. There
were altogether different heroes in the
year 1900. They were fellows easily
abashed by single tirnid glance Of a
lady's bewitching orbs, and the CLASSY
stare Of the heroine Of A. D. 1900 would
have rendered them speeches. for weeks.
The next story. Edwin, or the Wan
dering Fugitive" is chiefly remarkable
for the singular powers Of description
shown by the author. He employs most
unique methods and conveys a vivid i'm
preston to the mind Of his reader by
carefully describing the absence of
things. An example of this artistic in
T. l.. II.
beastly bad night:
1.-THE distanct moon was cheering the
The stars ordained to enliven the noe
turnal gloom hid themselves behind the
rolling scene of impenetrable clouds, re-
fusing to emit one suspicious ray: cloath-
ed in her deepest sable, night, solitary
night seemed to deplore the fate Of the
vanquished. In signing gale and driz-
zling shower"
Oh! what bad night 1t must have
been, to be surel What a vivid pen pic
turel The moon away over in the anti
podes and the stars absolutely refusing
to emit one suspicious ray" not doing
their duty in fact. No wonder the hero
'laid him down, not to rest, but to
ruminate on that days misfortunes"
Without doubt the poor fellow got
soaked to the skin and caught dreadful
cold.
The conversational powers Of this
charming hero are much greater than the
heroes Of the other stories In the volume.
After his night out he asks the wealthy
and distinguished owner Of a palatial
mansion, whom he has accidentally dis
covered. to put him up for while"
In these decorous terms:
Sir, I sincerely ask your pardon for
unseasonably interrupting your studies
by visit SO abrupt and unexpected;
but I hope the necessities Of my situa-
ton at this time will in some measure
Now that was modestly put for
young fellow who had been lying out in
the, rain all night. But the old gentle
man is not to be outdone In politeness.
and he 'tgoes the hero one better" in
this wise:
''Pray, sir, wave (?) all ceremony on
this point; your appearance and address
are sufficient apologies in your favor, and
cannot fail to recommend you to respect
and esteem. My curiosity, indeed, ex-
cites desire to hear on what extlaor-
binary occasion you have been induced
to honor me with visit in situation
so entirely secluded from the world and
unknown to fame; nevertheless, seeing
you are much fatigued with your jour-
ney, I defer further inquiries until you
have taken some refreshment at my
house and composed your wearied spir-
it's"
The statement previously made that
these early short stories were devoid Of
humor was perhaps incorrect. The modern
reader would probably conclude from the
foregoing quotations that the hero at
tempted to "string" the old gentleman.
who promptly handed back an exceeding
iy warm one, to use the modern terms
applied in such cases.
The titles Of these stories are not the
least attractive thing about them One
Is q romance entitled "The Banditti Of
Monte Baldo, or the Lass Of the Lake."
@I,a
tic Tomb of st. Angelo" An exception
ally thrilling story Is Chateau de Gan
dolfo, or the Mysterious Fugitive Ger
man Romance" The mysterious fugi-
tive" feature seems to have been ex-
ceedingly popular and effective. Still an
other of these ancient gems Is WAR
rington Grange. or the Victims Of Treach-
ery." most somber yarn, which starts
out with O description of the funeral of
writer Of short stories who dare make
such beginning? The hero Of this story
Is assassinated, the heroine dies a luna
tic, the villain commits suicide and the
wicked woman in the case immures her
self in the cloister.
The punctuation Of these stories, which
Is given In the quotations, exactly as it
is in the original, is somewhat fearful
and wonderful, as witness its effect upon
the old lady in the rich nightgown. But
nothing is spared by the authors or
printer to furnish the fiction reader Of
the year 1900 with the weirdest sensations
and the full value Of his money, and
there is enough material in one Of these
short storias to furnish plot and incident