The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-09-07

=
The story is one of love, a great love,
which the author says was in the days Of
Cesar Augustus altogether a rarity. The
picture drawn Is that of a time when men
did not expect to find virtue and women |
were surprised if by any chance they dis
covered a desire in themselves to be Who'll
~ virtuous. A philosopher says in the
book: .E
"Our republic is false, our gods are false, and,
indeed, know of but one TRUTH
And what may that be?? said another.
Eve all liars' he quickly answered.
The lovers of the story, Vergilius and
Aria, are of noble Roman families. But
Antipater, the son Of Herod; king of
Judea, wants the girl. He sets on foot
a plot to get Vergilius out of the way.
The scene shifts to Jerusalem. = There the
Roman becomes involved quite uninten-
tionally in the intrigue of Antipater to-
make away with hiss father, the plan of
Antipater being also to destroy Vergilius,
of course. = Vergilius' slove for ARIA, the
Roman maiden, broadens the horizon Of
his sympathies for his fellowmen. 1t
| opens Ibis heart for the coming of Christ
of which he has heard much. ARIA at
| home has heard, too, from a Jewish maid
en- who, is her slaves The plotting and
murder and deviltry going. on in the court
of Herod furnish a Striking contrast to
! this embra cling sl@ye,J the birth OF
(which at this time is y,rtypifed, by the
author in the affection IF these two for
each other and in their consequent gen
erous impulses toward their fellows.
Antipater's plot to destroy his, father
and Vergilius is discovered, and Herod
breaks forth: " - 7 :.
! Serpents, murderers, children of the devil
Soon shall your souls wander in hell and your
bodies rot in the valley of Hinnom. Take them
to the TORTURE and make it slow for such as
give further knowledge. Away with them.
Let their food be fear and their drink be the
sweat@o of agony and their end be death at the
games Of Cesar. IS ~ 90
| Later comes sword fight between Yer
gilius and Antipater, an event that was
not on the program for theG day Of the
games Of Cesar. In it the author does
: we'll but does not prove quite equal to the
j And after such scenes and Ii contrast
with them, the reader sees Vergilius the
tribune, on his way to meet another Ro-
man in mortal conflict near Bethlehem
come by accident upon the newly-borr
, Christ and his mother. This is in part
the authors picture:
On the straw before them lay beautiful
young maiden, child upon her breast. Hel
arms which encrcled the babe, her hands,, he1
. head. her whole body and the soul within hat
l a glow of fondness. Nature had clothed he1
for its great event with fulness of beaut!
wonderful and yet familiar. In her soft blue
eyes they saw that peace and love which are
y part of the ancient common miracle Of God
They more, even the light Of the world
but were not able to understand. Waving strand
and masses of golden hair lay above he
\ shoulders and about the head of the child upol
: her bosom. It was lustrOus beautiful hair. ant
a seemed to glow as the bearded man came nea
with the lantern. What was there in the ten
y der, peaceful look of the mother, what in he
. full breasts, what in the breathing of the child
5 what in the stir of those baby hands to maxi
the soldier bare and bow his head?a ..:s--
e f: This strikes one as distinctly made
v |-quate not to say comm onplace. MI
Do 1,111o t,n- "a RI
J. tit or, at least, to have worked it owe
y with great care. It is a scene of whicl
j. almost every mind has drawn its owl
= !; picture, and, therefore, is one to be han
u died with great strength and delicacy o
touch such as MI. Bachelor has no
given it. ~-r as. -. ~ -. .,<... .. -
d It would not do to omit mention of tn
o picture Mr.. Bachelor gives Of Augustus
- It is largely covered by the one wor
> foxy; or, if owing to certain associa
= lions, which that would has come to have
{. it's use IS undesirable, we might sa
y "crafty"-a crafty rake, with fleetin
- generous impulses There us little Of tn
: heroic in the characterization.
~ Altogether we must come back, for on
y estimate of the books impression upo
:. the reader, to the statement that it is Xix
70 that of q romantic play Indeed, we Sc
; no reason why the book might not b
- =; made over into a drama of very consider
~ able interest, provided care were take
.e not to offend by introducing, a scene sue
=, - as that partly described. It could be di:
le- pensed with without destroying the il
:. :. terest in the plot materially.
~ (New York Harper & Brother
Price S1.35.)
Is. Daily, and weekly and even month
4 papers persist in their error as 20 tt
existence once upon time Of Nant
- Stair, the heroine of the new novel
to that name published by D. Appletc
& Co.
NANCY Stair" by Elinor Macartnt
"a Lane, says prominent weekly, lis
az novel we'll worth reading, not only for
al entertaining qualities, but for its rescl
1n and sympa thetic portrayal Of a beautif
10. character in history, who came within tt
=. orbit of Robert Burns, the poet
&c And a big daily protests that the
ia seems to be perfect craze among move
= lists to rake in, the ashes of the past +
dead and gone personages with which
decorate the pages of fiction. :
81 A third reviewer speaks of nurrylng
! Carlyle, " where he certainly found
. : mention Of Nancy stair. The publishe
he have given their assurance that the fast
al mating heroine was a Pigment of MI
g. Lanes imagination
The Uneasy Chair.
", THE MAGAZINE SAMPLER