The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-06-14
NEWS OF THE BOOK WORLD
A Problem in Denouements Suggested by a
Bright New Novel, "a Bingham Rose"
One of the Most Readable Books of the
Season Thus Far Received by the Un-
easy ChaIr-New Novel by Robert Grant
Z Soon to Be Issued. 3

.. B. Is 7 .
The Uneasy Chair and its chum had
somewhat Of a tilt last evening over a
Bingham Rose, by Alice Woods Ullman,
an unusually readable story in these days,
when, if we may believe. the author, pub
fishing houses, with a few good old ex-
ceptions, have degenerated into factories,
and books are made, not written" The
tilt grew out of the denouenlent.
Here is the situation: Anne is a girl
with a mans head and a wonan's heart,
with a spirit Of polite impudence, for the
most part a very delightful person to
meet in or out of a book. There are two
young men who enter largely into the
girls life. For one she may be said
! to have motherly affection; the other. she
loves. The former Victor stetson. who
loves Anne, is altogether a. likable fell
low, but, as one reviewer says, "a bit too
good for this world" tho not a goody-
goody. The other, John Warren, a young
whom Danny. another ohAracter, might
well have, had in mind, tho. he did not,
when he said, 'Ain't nothin' to do but
swear bout some things Certainly, If
there is an inclination to swear in ones
makeup, it will be excited by John War
rem. John is to marry another girl, how
ever. Victor becomes victim of con-
sumption His physician. DR.. MARI, one
/ of the enjoyable characters of the story,
forders him to Arizona. The disease has
progressed too far for him to go alone,
| to let him go with a strange nurse would
mean inconsistencies and depression quite
necessary to be avoided. Anne is the only
| is quite impossible for her to do that ex-
cept as his wife. But she can bring her
| self to make no false vows to love and
cherish Of the. kind that she believes a
wife should make. So the marriage is by
contract. Nominally and legally as his
wifi in, Nv q y1l1r Ar crnh
with Victor to Arizona. There are no
misunderstanding about the arrange
ment, except that Victor does not, under
stand the. true state of Anne's feelings to-
/ ward John.
1 It is plain to be seen that there are
| two easy solutions Of the situation. BY
one Victor will recover, and Anne, nurs-
ing him back to health learning to adj
I mire more and more his manly qualities
and resolutely putting out of mind John,
for whom she has declared she has lost
her respect. will give Victor her heart.
! BY the other, Victor will not recover, and,
when he is gone, John and Anne will be
! brought together. To find out which, if
either, of these solutions the author adopts
the reader of this will have to read the
i book.
The chair prefers the former solution,
] its chum the latter. There has been
from time immem orial the belief that love
] is thing wholly involuntary, that under
i such circumstances as those outlined
ii Anne's heart is irretrievably Johns, how
i ever strongly her reason may urge her
I that it should be Victors. If this view
is accepted, there is only one happy end
ing possible. If, on the other hand the
soul declares itself the master and recog-
nizes the fact that there is something
! higher than physical attraction, it may
! follow the light Of reason and win a vic
tory over sensuous attractions and even
those of mental affinity, in favor of moral
worth and genuine manhood, especially II
= these are joined with the lighter graces
In that case there is another solution, a
triumph of the spirit over circumstances
without having the way made easy.
4 Would the reader, then, like to have
J Anne. put out Of her life altogether hel
attachment to John and cling to Victor
E or would he prefer to have the girl ''re.
: main true to John, assuming that he
II develops in character, and ultimately be.
come his wife? The story takes strong
l hold on one. Ones syrnpathies go out tt
Anne, and he wishes her happiness "eve1
5 Eafterward, whichever way the story ends
2 The author has happy faculty Of cpl
: grammatic speech that lends much to the
: charm Of the book. The following ex
2 amples were marked by the chair in hi
reading:
Every one may buy book but very few cal
: read it.
: as of what they want fact to be.
The last minute is better than a post norton
!, Women all write now. They want some
!. thing to do between times.
4 People always tell the truth when they d
! not stop to think.
y The Uneasy Chair.
Il Robert Grants new novel; t.The Under
, current will be published in book form b.
a Charles Scribner's Sons early in September
:, Certain '.Theosophists' of the more credulou
: sort are tiinidly asking when the British fore
4 In Tibet is going to fall in with a genuine Ma
hatma, says the New York Times Saturda
Review. The suggestion fills us with forebod
s ing. 81.
: BOOKS RECEIVED
: A GINGHAM ROSE. BY Alice Woods Ullmar
: indianapolis: The Bobbs- Merrill company
Price 81. 80.
Z Hospital for N. p. Employees.
e + Contracts have been signed for the frs