Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-11-18
THE BALLINGTONs; a Novel BY Fran
ces Squire. Boston: Little, Brown &
Co

should be as the wife of so severe mas
ter as her husband The author puts case
strongly. She introduces men and women
who are like unto the men and women we
meet. They talk of much the same things
They strive for about the same ends Her
novel, indeed is miniature of the life that
is being lived by great numbers of people
throughout these United States at the pres
ent time, and it is to be feared that many
a woman will recognize. in Agnes Balling-
tons experiences and sufferings some of the
elements that have entered into their own
lives. There was no cure for such man
as Ballington. He was sustained by his
conception of his own righteousness, and
not even the tragedy which closed the cpl
sGde of his married life could convince him
that he had been other than a tolerant Just,
patient husband. There are plenty of Fer
dinand Baliingtons in the world today.
This is tire first novel from the pen of
Frances Squire, whose name in the work.
aday world is Mrs. Frances Boardman
Squire Potter, assistant professor of Eng
lish al the University of Minnesota
OUR AsIATIC NEIGHBoRs SERIES
PHILIPPINE LIFE IN TOWN AND
COUNTRY. BY James A lie Roy. IL
Illustrated. New York: G. z. Putnams
Sons. Washington: Woodward &
Lothrop.
Mr. lie Roy is now United States consul
at Durango, Mex. Prior to his appoint
ment to that post he was for two years
pine commission during the establishment
of civil government in the archipelago, and
by dint of close study of the conditions
and the problems, he acquired a knowledge
Of the situation which has caused him to
be regarded as an authority on insular ques-
tons No better choice, indeed, could have
been made by the publishers for the Phil
ippine number of the "Asiatic Neighbors
Series
The author draws a distinction between
the Christianized and the Mohammedan in
habitants Of the archipelago noting that
he regards the former as the true Filipinos,
in the sense of the books scope He warns
all students of this question to avoid the
extremes of both the imperialist and the
anti-imperialist schools. There has been,
he says much confusion as to the true
state of affairs because of a loose following
of the testimony on the two sides much
of which is partisan and some Of it un-
reliable.
Mr.. LIE Roy does not uncompromisingly
denounce Spain and all her works in the
Islands, but urges that the very fact that
the Islanders had revolted against the
Spanish authority was testimony to the
advances they had made under that rule.
His book Is mine OF information and he
presents his facts so clearly that his reader
keeps pace throughout the volume. The
habits of the people, the resources. indus
tries, climatic conditions, character of the
various tribes, political aspirations, prob
lens of government advantages and disad-
vantages for the foreign eapitalist-all
these are discussed intelligently, and the
| reader will close the volume with much
more comprehensive conception of the new
island possessions of the United States
than he had when he opened it.
WAYS OF NATURE. BY John Burroughs.
With portrait. Boston: Houghton,
Miffiin & Co. Washington: Woodward
& Lothrop.
John Burroughs IS not a naturalst-novel-
list He does not adopt the birds and
beasts his heroes and his herones. He
belongs to a different school Of nature
writer's, that of the fact-tellers, regardless
of the dramatic sequences. Yet Gdr. Bur-
| roughs, while protesting against most of
the fiction that passes for nature study
does declare that Rudyard Kipling is both
a naturalist and nature-novelist. He says
that the 'Jungle-Book" and others of that
kind from the same pen are true to life
however the creatures may be presented as
speaking and acting.
1t is Mr.. Burroughs belief that the birds
and animals do not reason, do not think"
IN the human sense, but that they follow
their instincts and in some cases perhaps
their memories in finding food defending
themselves and building their nests accord
ing to the protective system
These sketches. which have in the main
appeared in the pages Of the Atlantic
Monthly, have all the charm Of this delight
full writer's previous work. He tells much
that is new and interesting and instructive,
and even when he argues he Is not rancor-
Gus. He has learned a great lesson from
nature and is teaching it now to his many
admirers and readers.
AN ALPHABET OF HISTORY. The
Words by Wilbur D. Nesbit, the Pic
lures by Ellsworth Young San Fran
cisco: Paul Elder & Co.
The enterprising school superintendent
who adopts this history book will have no
trouble In keeping the classes in that branch
entertained. A bit of such nonsense would
do any school room a world of good. or
course some of the illusions In these twen-
ty-six rhyming history lessons are rather
beyond the primary range. But whether
the youngsters could appreciate them or
not, the books here for the elders who like
clever joke and can laugh at comical
picture without feeling that there has been
any loss in dignity. If these delightful
products of the press do any good at all 1t
is in teaching us that we can laugh much
better now than later The alphabet is
composed of tributes in verse to Alexander
the Great, Brutus Columbus, Diogenes
Eurlpides, Franklin, Galileo, Hippocrates
Iago, Ben Jonson, Capt Kidd. Lucullus,
lillian, Raleigh, Shakespeare, Tell Ulysses,
Villon, Watt, Xantippe, the king Of Yvetot
and Zenobia.
THE PREPARATION OF MANUSCRIPTS
FOR THE PRINTER. BY Frank II.
Vizetelly, member of the Society for
the encouragement of Arts. Manufac-
lures and Commerce. New York: Funk
& Wagnalls Company.
This Is the day of much manuscript max
ing. The book presses are kept humming
with few Interruptions. grinding out tons
of reading matter. and the newspaper
presses are doing even larger business.
All this means copy" and a large per-
centage of this copy is prepared by noyices.
people WHO have had no experience or who
have never been properly coached In the
niceties of manuscript making. Mr.. yizet-
elly's handy little volume Is Just the right
guide for the education OF these amateurs
or uninstructed professionals. It Is a
book which every one with yearning for
getting into print should study. It tells
how to prepare the copy for the printer.
how to punctuate, how to insert new mat
ter; warns against too much uncopied In
teriineation, and makes plain all the rules
which serve the end Of giving the compost
tor clean. easily followed copy. All this.