New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1902-10-19


THE LADY OF THE HAHGE By " " Jacobs
nj Ilu Stat Emo. PIP 30 podd Mead * 60.
A RAYARD FROM BENGAL. Being some nc
launt Of The Magnificent and spanking Career
Of Shand h E Iqy1 ,u ln1n JGeIec H. A
calcutta University. author OF JoItlnEs anu ,n
Parallels and Proverbs Of iliJoSh. freely trans
dtra i with imtroiuotion Notts and Appendix
hv the above Hurry Euucsho J1hbtil"r. . a
Vim eight illustrations by BERNARD Partridge
limo Up. xiv. l57 II. Appleton - 60
Mr. Phtlpotts steadily improves in his work
The River" based ou Dartmoor types ana
scenes which he has been studying for years.
and has put into more than one mover. Is ~
fresh in atmosphere as though the author were
interesting himself IN these things for the hrSt
time II the story creaks uuyw here II Is al some
of those points where Mr. Phllp"tts fingers
little too Ions, ON the beautie- OF his loved region
He comes. in short. dangerously near To giving
US purple patches for their own sake. where W
want only enough of DartmOor color to Serve
as a background for the events narrated. Iut
we speak of this in friendly warning than
in serious disapproval. for while We could spare
some of the descriptive passages We can easily
forgive their presence. the book Is In all i'm
pOrtant respects so good. 1t relates 10 the love
making Of "a peasant With excellent judgment
the author refr;lins from bringing this love max
ing too often to the centre of the stage. He
realizes with what peculiar restraint his moor
folk adjust atairs of the heart To the exigencies
of daily life. and though he exhibits Nicholas
EdgCOmbe d of deep passion he refuses
10 ignore the rustic simplicity and measure of
the mans ordinary gait. There is tragedy i'll
this book, but 1T is the tragedy of people who
know how 60 suffer. whO continue 10 work de
spite burdens of sorrow OF course 4 foil to
Nicholas must be provided. and he appears in
the person Of dissipated and hot-tempered
farmer. from whose INSCRIPTIONS conduct the
tragic occurrences of the novel ali flow. His evil
doing never forgotten. yet the Dartmoor
atmosphere remains We are made 80 feel the
Christening quiet of the solemn landscape, the
poetry of the river. which lends a glamour to
prosaic things. and though there is suffering
here it cannot be said that the story is painful.
The quaint talk OF untutored but shrewd yokcls
enlivens many Of the chapters. Mr.. Phillpotts
is travelling in the footsteps of Blackmore and
Thomas Hardy. He has great masters, and ne
is far from cqualiug them. but he is not un-
worthy of them
Mr. Connolly's fishermen very human
creatures. He portrays his Gloucester models
with true sympathy and with sure hand. He
understands these hardy followers of the sea-
enters into their interests with perfect ease and
gives stories which. If not rich in inven-
tion. at any rate truthful and entertaining
He is especially happy in rendering the talk
of his friends with its sincerity. its common
sense, its rough good nature and simple huInor
Relating their adventures. he also puts into his
stories the flavor Of the element with which they
are identified. These are good sea tales. salty
and inyigoratng. The Illustrations arr as
breezy and clever as the text.
THE Lady of the Barge offers a curious mkt
IRE OF serious and comic motives The tituIar
story is in the authors most humorous Vein 1t
treats OF several OF those commonplace types
which have So often. in Mr.. Jacobs hands proved
such amusing material There are others like
il in this collection. and they are all equally
good In five of the stories he deals with Sc
rious motives. Two at least of these-."rhe
Monkeys Paw" ana In the Library
powerful in conception and thoroughly artistic
IN execution. The Well is merely horrible
and crude into the bargain; Captain Rogers
Is conventional. end Three at Table is again
more horrible than interesting. and far fetched
as Wen We gather that Mr.. Jacobs is anxious
10 widen MS range. and makes experiments
Which sometimes Succeed and sometimes most
lamentabiy fail. We hope he will go on with
thein. Tor those two OF his tragic tales which
we have selected for praise are very we'll done
indeed, and suggest that he may some day pro-
duee memorable work along the same lines LIN