The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-04-07

romance, which is well written and full of
the atmosphere of the time. (New York:
Harper & Brothers. I.20)
Without a Warrant, by Hildegard
Brooks, is q mystery story of rather an
unusual type, and to put 1t mildly, more
improbable than most such tales are. The
plot turns upon the mysterious kidnap-
ping of young lady. for purpose which
is not revealed till the end of the book.
ard upon her detention, IN masculine at
tire. in a country house. of which five or
six determined men have taken posses
sion. These men are under the command
of leader with melancholy eyes and
brusque manner and apparently a hid
den sorrow, and the reader perceives at
an early stage in the romance that he Is
predestined to marry the young woman in
the case. After she-not he-has captured
and subdued the villain single-handed, the
betrothal is allowed to take place. The
story deserves more credit for its ingenu-
ity than for its probability. New York:
Charles Scribner's Sons. $500
kings End" by Alice Brown. is a
story of a New Hampshire hill town, in
Producing much the same type OF char
acters as those with whom the previous
work of this author has icade us familiar.
II must be said, however, that her talent
is less suited to the foim Of novel than
to such short stories as those In her for
mer books, Meadow Grass" and 'Tiver-
ton Tales" There is much good char
acter work in this novel, but the plot is
not Impressive. 1t is simply a series of
scenes loosely hung together; and had
the different chapters been short stories,
each with a separate theme, but all con-
nected by the community of characters
and locality, the book would have been
quite as charming and rather more ar
tistic AS 1t stands, however, it is worth
reading. The various characters are dis
tinctly new types. Luke, the village out
cast and Ishmael, Nancy Eliot. the girl
ish religious enthusiast, the Elder" the
old travelling preacher; even Big Joan"
the Nova Scotia domestic, are all sharp
ly individualized, and not one of them is
copied from the work of anybody else.
Whatever else Miss Brown is, she is al
ways original. In opening a new book Of
hers one is always sure Of not coming
on the average New England dialect
story, with the average allowance of dia-
lect and description, and the usual feeble
attempts at humor and dry efforts at
pathos. Moreover, her work is natural
and realistic, and there are no caricatures
in 1t. She can be original without being
bizarre, and that is rare and refreshing
thing among writer's of dialect fiction.
(Boston: HOughton, Mifilin & Co. $150)
Martin Brook" by Morgan Bates, is
n story which starts ont in a promising
way, but dwindles pitifully after the first
few chapters. The hero appears as a
small and ragged boy, and the passages
describing him, his protector, Judge
Northcote, the arstocrat Of the village
and their picturesque meeting are very
well done. But the rest of the book is
flat Martin subsequently blossoms out
into a prig, for one thing, and not a very
satisfactory prig at that. (New York:
Harper & Brothers. sl.5O)
THE Column" by Charles Marriott, is
n fanciful romance Of rural English life,
the real hero of the book being column
which an antiquarian enthusiast has TAX
en- from a Greek temple and placed in
the middle of Il laurel hedge, on his lawn.
There is obviously intended to be a re-
semblance between the fair, unconscious,
classic heroine of the book, daughter of
the antiquarian, and the column. The
Other Woman. When one has said that
one has said it all. The book is TRACE
dy. 1t is frightened by one epigram
which is worth preserving. We ire in
formed that the hero always knew at the
time when he had made a fool of himself.
which saved him the inconvenience of re-
pentance. That is not bad at all. (New
York: John Lane: The Bodley Head)
--
"Graustark" is n fanciful story of adj
venture by George Barr McCutcheon. who
has already a considerable reputation as
a war correspondent and artist. 1t is
clever, as one might expect from the au-
thor's other work. and the story goes
with a rush. The style is something like
that which Anthony Hope has made IA
miliar to novel readers. "Graustark'' be-
ing q wholly ina sinary kingdom some-