New-York tribune., 1901-04-07

Jane Barlow. 12mo, PIP. 3D. Dodd, Me1d g ~
QUINCY ADAMS SAWYER ANp fil,@T. MAsoNSi rs E2N NeN
England Home Life. by Charles Eeit3n on, iliSi; i;
l2mo PIP 56S. Boston: & NJ Clark Iupi'i''7
Company.
Mr. St John makes much of 4 sentence which
he borrows from Lord Bacon. Revenge is kind
of wild justice which the more mans nature
,rns TO the more ought law to weed IL out
''as suggests n good theme for the novelist ana
oan reads between the lines of The CRIMSON
Weed" an intention highly creditable to the au-
,hor But in the execution OF his intention he
Snakes one think of the artist who can see the
masterpiece lying IN his raw material out iaChS
the master hand with which to bring IL out
The merits of this book reside in the conception
Of a passionate Southern nature blasted py 'he
7.riiiv of A Northern deceiver. yet snatching
rom The wrcckage elements of strength
which enable the victim to carry on a long ana
ultimately triumphant struggle with fate
Maria Rahucca the daughter of a noble ltaiian
mouse falling in love with a selfish Engilsh
:.gtis and learning to repent at leisure the error
Of her flight with him to fools paradise Is
ne,ire interesting that she deserved To De
Drawn with a more competent hand thah MI.
81 John can claim. He gives us now ana thei
=, realizing touch. helps us to feel Maria griei'
10 grasp the disgraceful naturalness OF Sir ''ii-
i,ort Otwav.s misconduct to that there is
Growth of their sons character Luke Grey. as
tho unhappy youth is called, knows the affec-
ton and of neither the man nor the woman.
and his discovery of his parentage wakes IN his
head ideas of revenge upon Otway. which. added
To- the mental disabilities from which he already
suffers lead easily to such dreary developments
as Mr. St John sets forth. But the story is
spoiled by the atter's inability to say the right
thing in the right place. to make the things with
y hch he deals seem always natural and true
The plot haIts on its way toward the final chap
,er the characters are often vaguely presented
there are passages quite unnecessarily coarse.
and at the end feels. have said. that
:. fine opportunity has been wasted. The book
is readable but will be easily erased from the
memory where {; more skilfu treatment of the
persons and events involved might have pro
duced something worth remembering
The short stories. some deserving rather the
tilic Of sketches in Miss Barlow's new book.
From the Land of the Shamrock" illustrate
very deftly the fresh charm of Irish life and
character studied on its native soil. The author
knows how to be brief and she is not afraid.
either 10 be not only brief but sparing OF Incl
dent Her tales not full of happenings.
They arr compact instead Of those slight strokes
81 Iortraiture which put before US in quiet but
unmistakabe colors the intimate traits OF the
and their unconqucrable humor Miss Barlow
occupies modest place in the ranks Of the
rapidly increasing company of dclineators of
Irish life. but within her limits she accomplshcs
good work
Quincy Adams sawyer has two sub titles
and the Of both is justified but while the
plot puts the book in the category Of novels
the general tone Of the work is that Of a col
lection OF lignettes drawn from the numerous
models provided by Il New-E.ngand village. in
the SIXTIES. The hero is "A young man from Iius-
ton. trained in the ways of city and provided
with good balance at the bank He comes to
people of IN" neighborhood. and finally inarri-s
:. country girl. Identifying himself with the
interests OF Tn" little village he become "A pillar
81 its fortunes Mr.. Pidgin aiyns To show that
IN" mans character has something to do with
his career. hut he also exhibits him making
his way with In" aii of his money Without tn"
sineWS Of derived from his fortune il is
doubtful if Mr. sawyer would have accom-
plishei much. Th" leading motive. however. is
tie celebration of those humble domcSticitics
for American writer's. The village boarding
nous" and surprise party. village love affairs
politics and gossip. make the substance of the
book. 1t ali leaves an impression Of unlovcIy
commonplace. Mir Iidgin's handling Of his sub
ject disclosing only commonplace abilities. The