The Washington times., 1901-11-10
Recent Fiction.

"The Making of Jane" by Sarah Barn.
| well Elliott is rather n character-study
than novel, and, as in the most of this
authors work, there is Il subtle strain OF
| pathos running through 1t. Jane is a re-
pressed, misunderstood child, and she be
| comes a self-controlled, subdued young
woman. She is the centre OF very un-
common complication OF deceit. misplaced
| passion, and injustice. and the victim OF
| malice which seems. to say the least of
it, unwarranted- by any of the ordinary
motives which control the actions of man
kind But the fact remains that the char
acter of Jane is a mastery achievement,
well conceived and perfectly drawn. The
hero Is lay figure, and there is certain
| improbability about the denouement. 1t
seems to be out Of touch with the quiet
ness and dreary realism Of the rest of
the book; it is rather too melodramatic
and pronounced. and also rather tax on
the readers credulity That a girl who
has never had q will of her own. or done
anything but look pretty, shall suddenly
develop into thoroughly successful bust
ness woman, is a little too much for any
one who knows the average young person
to believe. CNew York: Charles Serb
ner's Sons. S.5O)
MY Lady Peggy Goes to Town" by
Frances Aymar Mathews, Is n story OF
a madcap girl of the days Of powder and
patches. rhymed love letters, and Beau
Brummel. The plot of tne story deals
with the adventures of this maiden dur
ing her journey IN the disguise of a gal
liant. 1t is cleyeriy written. bright in da.
Iogue, and stirring in action. and the
ig aft
Bowen-Merriu Company. $3.50
Amos judd by J. a Mitchell. is
fantasia of Oriental mysticism and mod
ern Connecticut farm life and might
briefly be described as fairy tale for
grown people. The hero IS an Indian
prince. transplanted to this country in
peculiar circumstances. and brought up
as the son of a Connecticut farmer. As
he grows older, curious powers of clair
voyance and prophecy develop in him.
and these play an important part in the
plot, such as 1t is. 1t is original in con-
ccptiOn and clevsrly worked out. The il
lustrations are in color, and are by a. I.
Keller. (New York: Charles Scribner's
Sons)
"Old Times in Dixie Land" by Caroline
L. Merrick. is a book of stories Of ante
brllum life in Louisiana. There are some
interesting scraps O freminiscence in it,
and the author does not conhne herself
entirely to studies of plantation charac-
tiers and dialect. CNew York: The Graf
ton Pross.J
"a Parht GentiI Knight" by Charlton
Andrews, is a historical romance whose
scene is laid in France during the reign
,F f'.t b.ri,,a 4 NfaJfpI Nh. I..t
ter deals with the Massacre Of st. Bar
tholomew, and the rest Of the book with
the emotions OF a heroine who loves the
wrong man for thirty-two chapters and
discovers her mistake in the thirty-third,
and with the virtues Of a hero who is an
Admirable Crichton In doublet and
pIumed hat. 1t Is doubtful whether the
genial Chaucer ever imagined Just such
a hero. Judging from the portraits of the
old portrait and the gentle vein of
humor running through his tales, he
knew human nature quite thoroughly,
aud there is not enough human nature
in Mr.. Andrews C0mte de Chavannes to
enable him to walk alone Those who
want something really exciting will do
well to read the history of the period
instead of attempting to read through
this nearly intermimble piece of fiction
(Chici go: A. c. McClurg K Co. s1.50)
Richard Vaughn. by Benjamin f
Cobb is . book which indicates that Mr..
Cobb ought not to try to write stories.
Chicago: The HCnneberry Company.
$500
1.-THE House Divided" by H. B. Mar
riott WNson, is a novel of the time of
George II. The hero is n colonial from
Vermont, who comes to England to try
to get back his ancestral estates and
gets into sundry scrapes while doing so.
The first half of the book is mainly oc-
cupied with this young mans entirely
idIotic behavior, from the consequences
OF which only the special Providence
engaged by historical novelists at SO
much n chapter could possibly have
saved him. But Providence is always on
hand, and in due time the wicked old
earl dies swearing strange oaths and
the young hero comes into his own and
endows the heroine properly with all his
worldly goods. There is o Considerable
amount OF fighting iD the book, but that
is not an original Device. New YORK.
Harper & Brothers. 81 SOL