Evening star., 1906-09-08

largely dependent on the personal ideas Of
the dweller therein, It has been sought to
dtssociate the home value from the dis
cussion as far as possible and confine 1t
chiefly to the economic value Of the farm.
The book, therefore, naturally falls into
two parts. The first eleven chapters treat
OF the selection OF the farm for profit.
with some illustrations OF the principles
involved. A score-card for Judging farms.
such as used by the author for a number
Of years in teaching this phase Of farm
management to college students, has been
made the basis of the discussion in the
hope that it may prove a means OF con-
creting the ideas of the reader. The last
eight chapters OF the book deal with the
thirty different regions Into which the au-
thor has divided America for the purposes
Of treatment The discussion of each re-
gion follows the order Of the score-card
outlines in the earlier chapters, In order
that logical comparison of the different
regions may be made"
THE BALANCE OF POWER; Novel. Ry
Arthur Goodrich. Illustrated by Otto
Toaspern. New York: The Outing
Publishing Company.
A new figure appears upon the American
horizon of f1ction-a young man with q
grasp Of things and with a style for the ef-
fective telling Of tale Of present-day sig
nifcance. Arthur Goodrich has done we'll
In THE Balance of Power" and unless all
chosen a strikingly novel theme, his story
being Of the well-born young man who Is
thrust down by his fathers failure into the
lower ranks Of the workaday world. and
who rises by dint Of capacity and character
to position commensurate with his talents
and his virtues. Nor Is his setting remark
able for its originality--a New England
manufacturing town. with Its business and
political intrigues, and the final victory of
a nf hon II.
OF chicanery and greed. But in the telling
Mr.. Goodrich has hit the mark. His figure
Of John Gilbert is striking, attractive and
human. The young man Is well worthy of
his success In love and business. Around
him are grouped an assortment of men and
women who make the story go with rush,
and who add richly to the literature Of
human interest. Col. Mead with his west
ern slang and his determined partlsanship.
despite somewhat unnecessary uncouth
ness of dialect rendition is dear to the
readers heart. Mr.. Lumpkin, the street
vendor. adds comedy to the dialogues. Joe
Heffer, ex-convict. struggling for a new
chance and grateful for it when given, is
an excellent bit Of work. Samuel Hardy,
gruff, crusty manufacturer, Is a clear-cut
typle of the suspicious employer His daugh-
ter Is charming heroine a girl of moods
and many graces-a girl to love and worthy
Of great sacrifices.
In artistic keeping with the spirit Of this
admirable work are the Illustrations by an
artist whose work has always been Of uni
form excellence.
A MIDSUMMER DAYS DREAM. BY H
B. Marriott Watson, author Of Twist
ed Byzantine" &c. New York: ID. Ap-
pleton & Co.
1t is far cry from Hurricane Island"
the latest work from Mr.. Watson's pen be-
fore this one, to "a Midsummer Days
Dream" The former was a story Of brisk
ar nfflra ba oh 10
tale of English country house complica-
tions. delightful. dainty medley of COM
edy and manners. bit OF harmless in
trigue without denouement Of especial
force. 1t is clever In every line and situa-
tion. A man on his way to the great house
of wealthy family of title to attend rehear-
sails for a society performance Of Mid
summer Nights Dream" becomes lost in
the mazes of the park after nightfall. and
In his wanderings, encounters dryad and
finds her shoe on the ground near a foun-
tain. He tries to discover the owner of the
dainty bit Of footgear and his search leads
him into extrayagant situations and en-
barrassments: The chatter Of a great
atmosphere Of idle British society bent
upon dverting itself is admirably repre-
sented. No more attractive bit of light flc-
ton has been offered for a long time.
SCARLETT OF THE MOUNTED. By
Marguerite Merington: Illustrated
New York: Mofrat. Yard & Co. Wash
ington: Brentano's.
Granting the impossible situations pre-
sented in this brisk romance Of the frozen
gold fields of the extreme northwest, the
tale makes attractive reading. Somehow.
however, the atmosphere Of the theater Is
too insistent. The story seems as though
opera stage. 1t smacks Of the traditions
OF the boards. Groups form and dissolve
as at the beck Of the stage manager. Now
a bit of pathos, broken sharply by gufraw
Again. measure OF rollicking folly. sue
ceeded sharply by dramatic situation. Yet
1t Is interesting, II not convincing. The dia-
logue Is crisp and the characters are d.
verse.
THE DISTRACTIONS OF MARTHA. BY
Marion Harland Illustrated by R.
Emmet Owen. New York: Charles
Scribners Sons.
Mrs Terhune's cook books are excellent
guides to young housekeepers, and It is
rather pity that their author should seek
to make fiction out of them. The trials of
the wife who is essaying to run her own
establishment have been far better de-
scribed in novel form~than In 1.-THE Dis
fractions OF Martha" The fictionaI form
adds nothing to the force of the warnings
against errors in hiring servants, nor does
1t contribute to the entertainment of the
reader.
TILL YOUNG FOLKS CYCLOPAEDIA or
PERSONS AND PLACES. BY John
Denison Champlin, AM, associate
editor of the American Cyclopaedia
&c. Illustrated. Fifth edition. revised
New York: Henry Holt & Co. WASH
ington: VIM. BalIantyne & S1ns.
This work has become a standard item
in the library OF young readers. whose par
ents desire them to be kept acquainted
with the march of events and In touch at
the same time with the records of the past
1t has now been brought up to date by the
addition of considerable new matter. Among
the events which'are chronicled in the new
print are the Russo Japanese war, the es-
tablishment of Norway an Independent
kingdom, the great Baltimore fire, the erup-
tion of Vesuvius and the nearly total de-
struction of San Francisco by earthquake
and fire. The neurology has been brought
to date by the addition of world-famous
names. and in other respects the value. of
the cyclopaedia has been measurably in
creased.