The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-08-08
BY no means pretentious-merely to en1ivs
an idle hour. Published by Lothrop.

BY no means pretentious-merely to en1iven
IN idle hour. Published by Lothrop.
m the case Of "A Duke and HIS Double q
little book by Edward s. Van Zile, the YER
dot depends q good deal upon the point of
| view. We read 1t. in lieu of an evening pa
4 per, as we rode home in a street car and
It diverted US to such an extent that we
finished 1t after supper. with q cigar. It Is
not positively the greatest book we ever
read, but at this writing We have no hest
fancy IN pronouncing 1t superior to Thomp-
son on Corporations. Rants critique. Mil
toms Paradise LOST or Carlyle's "Sartor
Renrtus." II IL an amusing tale of
fashionable New York life. containing some
Of the qualities OF a good stage comedy A
Chicago flour baron moved himself and
his millions to New York. where he built
q palace on Riverside drive for himself.
his two charming daughters and his wife
Martha He cast about for means to place
the family on solid social basis. A real
and spurious Duke Of Hastings play i'm
portant roles In the achievement The char
acters are, on the whole. rather well done;
and the threads Of the story are neatly and
effectively woven. Published by Henry Holt
& Co.
There are many worse detective stories
than 1.-THE Gilded Lady" by VIII M. Glenn
ems and there are several better ones In
every book there are. probably. moments
Of disappointment. The disappointment in
this occurs when the author leaves OF the
engrossfng detail with which he begins the
narrative. The process of elimination by
which he discovers the ships name is tense
ly interesting, and the reader builds ex-
pectations Of solid enjoyment in the follow
ing Of clews measure Of regret follows
at tho abandonment Of the books logic"
20 to speak. in favor Of an attempt to give
the reader his moneys worth in the way Of
story" Nothing Of Conan Doyle's excels
the nrst part Of the narrative. It is averred
that the story II founded on fact; an ex-
PLANTATION which may account for the lack
of sustained motive and interest as fiction.
Published by Dillingham;.
A fantastic and an allegorfcai genius
have combined. in His Pseudoic Majesty"
to deliver lecture to many persons. in
GLIDING those sons and daughters Of the
Republic who are caste-bound; and by
these are probably intended Sons and
Daughters Of the Revolution and OF the
Confederacy and Of other patriotic" or
ganizations. Tho author intimates that
many sons ana daughters are displaying
family coats-of-arms and Boosting Of ancient
ancestry. less for the love Of country than
for the purpose OF attracting attention.
There are others who come in for share
of the sermon-which, by the way, is not
Intended to be ponderous in solemnity but
rather to be humorous. The author be-
holds with sorrow that many daughters OF
the Republic are feeking title through mar
rage with impecunious foreigners; and that
the sons are bowling before the idols Of
gold and monopoly. to the great detriment
Of the producers, who are, after all, the
people OF genuine value. If the latter prop
osition could be stated directly rather than
aIlegorically. the book might become a val
liable piece Of campaign literature. As 1t
Is, the book may divert those Of sufficient
persistence to follow an indirect purpose
through three hundred pages. The title
"Pseudoic." Is coined from the prefix
pseudo" Qdberty Publishing Company,
n. ~
william o. stoddard. author of several
stories for youths. including '"The Errano
Boy Of Andrew Jackson" has written
story Of tho war with Mexico. entitled
Ahead Of tho Army" It Is rather a
lively narrative of boys experiences. The
hero, and no other appellation literally
describes him, arrives In Mexico as the
war with this country Is beginning. 1t
ID what might be called q timely arrival
He becomes q guide Of the American Army
and IL thrown into happy contact with
such young officers as Lieutenant Grant
and Captains Lee and Mcclellan, all OF
them destined to fame. 1t is book to
warm the heroic impulses Of the average
healthy boy. Qothrop).