The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-03-11
Fictlon.

There Is good work in The Prize TO
the Hardy by Alice Winter The Bobbs-
Merrill Company Indianapolis though the
story read cousecutive!y il absurd. 1t
recounts the career and the lovo affairs
Of a strenuous young man from the West
who succeeds IN fitting into a hustling
Western community He finds no end Of
opportunities OF aiding his lady love, from
saving her from being run over by trolley
car TO rescuing her from a forest fire. When
the author ahstalns from adventure or
from trying 20 show up people she can
be entertaining She has delightful
sketch Of a -hiftlcss Yankee which shc
carries too far; pretty bit OF pioneer senti-
ment, that is not spoiled, good descriptions
Of Minnesota Swedes and some other peo-
pie and her heroine is often a natural and
attractive girl Her galaxy Of excitement,
however, becomes ludicroua
ia DR. Nicholas Stone &C W Dilhng-
ham Company f. Spence de Pue has
just escaped writing a good detective
story His hero. 70 be sure has all the
infallibility of Sherlock Holmes. though the
reader will fail 10 see how be contributes
seriously TO the unravelling Of most Of the
mysteries. The successive murders are ex-
citing and bewildering, and the Reader
follows them with attention Where the
whole plot however. Is ayowedly 10 expose
possible frauds on Insurance companies It is
thrown completely out Of gear by the at
tribution of the crimes 10 maniac. against
whom no human precautions can be taken.
There are other glazing impro liabilities
in the story agains: which The reader viii
not rebel as they add to the excitement
real service TO American history has
been rendered by Rowland F. Robinson
in the stories called out Of Bondage
(HouRhton Miflin Il Coz. There is nothing
historical about any Of these tales but in
them are described institutions and in
cident- that have disappeared or at any
rate are fast fading. The scene il Yer.
mont village near the Canada boundary
aud there is dialect 81 two kinds at least
the Yankee Of the soil and the Yankee as
spoken by the French Canadians But
we have a fine description Of the town
meeting and election. Of Guctoning OF the
town poor. Of the underground railroad
and 80 on There are delightful scenes Of
the old time New England country life.
with sentiment and patnos and fun too.
Eight short stories interesting from
| their subject il not from the manner in
which they are told which is decidedly
artless will be found in A Spoiled Priest
and Other Stories by the Rev p A Shee-
/ ban, d. d. (Benziger Brosl The best
Of these are stories OF Irish life. The title
story and that called demanded" ara
noticeable above the rest,
Though the why Of things il not very
| clear in The Girl Of La Gloria by Clara
Driscoll &C. p. Putnam's sons. the story
has swing and is readable enough The
heroine is charming and her death seems
wsnton murder. The scene Is in Texas.
close 10 the Mexican border There is
something 10 a few of the minor characters.
but good deal of the book seems not 10
be essential to the story
We are getting good deal Of the Canadian
Northwest in fiction nowadays. and perhaps
Mr.. Herman Whitaker's bakers dozen Of
tales The Prohationer and other Stories
tHarpers) may suffer somewhat by com
parison with earlier descriptions Of the roll
ing pIairies and billiards and rough din-
monds Of the frontiers They are all vigor-
Gus however and pretty well told The
masculine attractions TO which border
maidens yield may seem somewha, print
tive and the rough standards Of conduct
at times more crude than logical but the
stories generally hang together and carry
the reader along 1t is gratifying 10 find a
satisfactory ending to many Of them