The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-08-26

CnC0At
painting on a Vatican fan and as vigor-
Gus as the young KipiIng used TO be. II
has the eyanescent perfume Of some OK
Austin Dobson's most charming lyrics In
the French manner and the dash and
"go" OF the best romances Of adventure.
II must be porceiain--for one Is afraid II
will brenk-and yet nothing but old tapes
try has such coors. On the whole. IT Is
book upon which enthusiasm can be
safely expended without danger OF that
later recoii which makes the enthusiast
fear he has made bad emotional Invest
mapt While II seems 10 be utterly
spontaneous and 10 have fallen from the
pen as dewdrop from the air, Il Is IN
reality full OF subtle and calculated art
The publishers inform us that tho author
read something like fifty books In the
process OF getting NJ the historical back
ground upon which the little drama IL
set--for II r. an historical romance, but
n there were many such the term would
cease TO he burden TO the reviewer. II
f. not so much book for the money as
"rhe Gentleman From Indiana" but II
has more art than that delightful story
and Indicates more promise OF n keenly
There IL the strong suggestion OF reserved
power behind its light elegance and grace
"a suggestion which makes It even more
interesting as a promise than az per-
Torrance
t''Monslcur Beaucaire." BY Booth Tark-
ington. Mcclure. Phillips a Co. ti2s
For sale by isowman & IIanford)
xxx
Once upon time there was such
thing ms "the West" II was half To-
caiity and half spirit. II was free,
untrammeicd. glorious thing to those who
had affinity for II; It was simply wild
and woolly" to those who Judged IL by
the standard OF older civilizations.
Many men have written abou, 'the
West" and some OF them have done so
with authority. but perhaps no writer Is
more thoroughly penetrated with the
spirit OF II and the love of II and tho
regret Of II than the author OF ''The Girl
at the Hallway House" who also wrote
''rhe Story OF n Cowboy" Mr.. Houxb
smpresses the reader as writing simply
20 he the impassioned historian OF a phase
OF civilization which IN behind u.s. He
Ia hardly great novelist. but he Is a
great ehronirier. The story OF "The Glrf
at tho Halfway House" Is absorbing
not 10 much because the writer has a hold
upon 0rt or human nature as because he
holds "the West as Il was once and
shall be no more forever. In the hollow
OF his hand Heresis hts description or
the town where the scene OF the tale Is
iaid-a town which lay Just after the war
on the frontier" town Of the cattle
trade,
slowly. swinging up from the far
Southwest. whose settlement. slower and
still more crude. had gone on scores OF
years ago. when the spaniards ana the
horse Indiana Of the lower plains were
finally beaten hack from the rancherIas.
there came on III. great herds OF the
Fauni. hroad-horned cattle, fnotsore ana
slow and weary with their march OF
more than thousand mlics Theae vast
herds deploycd In turn about the town Of
IiisNiile. the Mecca for which they had
made this unprecedented pilgrimage.
They ,rampled down every lnclplent fela
and spread abroad over all tho grazing
lands untu every township held rs
thousands, crowded by the new thousands
continually coming on. Long train loads
81 these cattle Wild and fierce. fresh
nom the chutes into which they we're
driven after their fnarch across the un-
tracked empire o. The range. rolled east.
ward day after day. Herd after herd
pressed sim farther north. pas, Ellisvris
Ecins en- wsariiy another thousand miles
20 found ths Eiisvire % the upper range
e. take the place 81 the buffalo driven
frvm the ancient feeding grounds
Fortune Was there Cor any man. The
town hecamc ioads,onc FOR the restless
population ever orosaing out upon tho
uttermost frontier The men from she
farther issst irepred their wnisicoAts
ana taeir marrow hats a. uusvule All
the world ~cnt under Nlde foit ana bore
p NnsiinE SPUR Every man VAS armed
The ritrh of life was high q Was worth
death 10 live year IN such q lanai The
petiinesssa fen away from mankind The
horiron 90 ufe was wide There was
~ time Cor small sxartnsss A news.
papsr. sa-cailssi. cost quarter n a doll
lar The postmaster save no change
when one bousht posiaEc stamp A
shave vas worth q asarter % deuar.
or half cr a dollar. a. that uleht he
The prlce ~ n single drink was never a..
sabushsd sinra that eas scmthIne never
called Tor. For cawman O. spend one
euudrsa dollars AZ the cotiAss bar aud 20
lose tea thousand dollars a. CARTS later
tn che evening was feat not unusual
There were mor~ cattle, sough la Nv0aa
Tbe ranss men, acquainted Win danger
and fisk. isvisE cxcitemrrt haikri AZ no
hazard Hapsins ~ settled way % ufe.
ignorant - root. careless ef the WAYS
81 ether tands this town Was a 10Y %
rhcm. d test iust a. an lie. homeless.
Nomarissn. had been a lest by day and
~ nixat csAsrless. crude. tagtaria. thora
fai t-sn a continuous carausaL which
woeid have bsen ioyiess backed by = VI
tnhty les superb sa experience less
souRx Money ana Nfs-thess Two thlnss
Ne guard mast sacrrdiY In The older 80
sletcs me arst most iealeusiy. the lat
Ger With a lesser care In Eisrille thcsa
we're thc commodities in least esteem.
uhe philosophy of that land vas either
arare israran& 90 more profound thAn
.urs- over al TIE Norld. UnA4asa b. .
- .....- -Is.s A.. =. NxL N..aa.t cVca