New-York tribune., 1906-10-02
~, Return of RHdyGrd kipl'ng'

w Of rooK's Hill tRfa6EhaIn. gI nnoy a < r. ". S
illustrated ~e q Doubleday Page Co.
Ni"'' 1919 Kipling rose upon the horizon
When hSs huu' .te world one Of the things ABOUT
snd asfohisse the soul was his obvious pos
him fhs' Qualities that last. There was ii0
sessioh 0' 60 early stories Of his. one hau Ho
rnlstahins .a1b. Man Who Was" or "Withou'
doubt ~ rr.-sv." The stamp OF genius was
Benenl % "a he who read them for the nrs'
upon 'he-- bts homes that he would come paeh
tine AN,, AN'' and again These and other hl'ie
10 ihe" y. Ktpling's have been true ~
rss'eiP. T, has been possible 10 Fe-iea0
fhsr - ogsIn 10 re-read them, and never io'
nei" .. beve they lost their freshness ~
nv ~. Jungle Book is 10 think OF soi
riHA -. &c always there. a source OF sheeI -!
ihiNs -.tt,, can ever invalidate. But huoga
VIZ ,,te every other man OF genius ls' 49,
hp- ,.n and about the time OF the oou1--
h+ War he made Il Impossible lor 80
hH'S~ .or,e 10 rely upon him az an uiild 4.''-o
VIZ :, magic .n letters 20 maintain uiisiiohA
-sos,, given loyalty. He strayed from '''o
r,,cb had seemed 10 be marked Oul A0- 1-'--'
80 end wandered off into the o's'ai4oo - y
,rstb strange toys. What maae no
-. ,oo was that he took the Toys Win
w.. ssrjousness and turned Oracle where ne
.,s have remained the spinner OF Nhsp4'ou
-. Tn nrose and in verse he TAXED as 0-40
So, % save the British Empire from lSHo-
..,,r, collapse He took his counuy me" a.
-. ,s.h the formidable air Of schooIihAslef
..,,,rs a riot among his urchins' and prali-
,,.A.s the pedagogical ferule with an uho'i0H
olSl'. 80 who cherished his real gifts. put
,as, touch 10 an impossible situation IIeEo
.. -.s ,o,b,ng for the faithful TO DO but TO nlo
- sos farewell, and then go of to re-reao
.ar,. ro-d the Elephant" Recently, IN TWO OF
-. stories. Mr.. Kipling has brought forth
s-,,,s ,osat for repentance, and has made US leel
-. ,,s wanderings might at almost any time
1''~' - a, end. We are practically certain OF
,.ou, In ''Puck Of Pooks HIP the old KIP
ling has come bsoK' -,..,
,.,se ene thing 10 know that the enchanter VINO
80 zro,,e such compelling spells has recovered
"a, ,ro,s while he IS still in his prime and that
-. ,0o, once more look forward TO a new fabric
= ht building with a sense Of unqualified
.l..s,,re m come For we take this book as an
earnes. Of the authors lasting recovery Of him.
serr Having written so well, II does not seem
,oss,ble that he should ever again allow himself
n he lured away from his rightful province II
soes not matter that this Is a book Of stories
Cor children We should like 10 see the grown
reader who could resist its charm. The old craft
IS at work the old glamour IS thrown over every
mage. Beguilement IS here from the moment
that the eye falls upon the lines Of Pucks
Song" ushering in the ten tales of old England
a, which the book is made. In this wise runs
the song:
See you the dnpled track that runs.
o n that was where they hauled the guns
That smote King Philips fleet
See YOU our little mill that clacks.
So busy by the brook?
Ever since Domesday BOOK
See vou our Silly woods OF oak
And the dread ditch beside?
o that was where the SaXons broke
On the day that Harold died.
See YOU the windy levels spread
About the gates OF Rye?
o that Was where the Norurnen ned,
When Alfred's ships came ty.
Verse Ike this IS scattered throughout the
volume and always It is harmonized as skill
fully with the main current OF the authors pur-
rose-that is. TO set forth. in series OF vivid
and thoroughly humanized pictures, certain
phases IN the making oH ancient England. Two
little children have these pictures spread before
them through the Intervention Of the fairy who
Mr. Epling dspenses with the usual machinery
that goes with fairy tales. His method is not
easily analyzed, and for the best Of reasons-that
IS because il Is SO unobtrusive Perhaps if the
reader strains his faculties and watches for
every hint % art he may catch leeting glimpses
Of the author gently coaxing Una and Dan into
the fairy circle and subtly working up TO the
tstnt at which the children wiz be prepared TO
Fnp n1rflfiV harI oil hot
But even so. the readers attention is soon di-
verted. Puck is in fun h:ght with his story, and
We follow without question. We hear Of We
lands sword how II was forged and how # was
carried into battle We look again upon the
England 10 which the Conqueror came. or We
See the land as the Romans saw it, or the
Mortimer. and while the wonder OF things of
faeTy is always there. 10 heighten the beauty Of
The tales. 10 hn them with strange dim light,
We nevertheless meet living men in these pages,
sad are enchained by their valiant deeds. The
road atmosphere Of the book is matched, for
sfllsnce, by the handling OF the details Mr..
Kpling fits his diction 20 his theme. and as
though he were bent upon giving us good meas
ure, as though he were resolved to be his best
self upon this occasion. he not only causes his
adventurous and romantic narratives 10 ring
true but wreaks himself with the same care
upon what We may call his background The
English countryside as # is to-day is forever
creeping into the text, and whenever II appears
Is painted With the same pictorial art that
ne used TO practise in his best days. Witness
this passage:
When they reached otter Pool the Golden Hind
ktolAlec comfortably On a shallow, and they lay
lain q Toot OF close green. watching the water
Scirghe over the hoodeates down the messy brick
,r-s $50 from the m!llstrean TO the brook 4 big
ne children knew him well-rolled head
49, u!cers at some fiy that sailed round the
90 While once 81 Just often the brook rose
60 ssaStlon u an inch against all the wet pebbles
- theE watched the slow draw and shiVer Of q
Uealn Of air through the treetops.
Ihere is instruction. Of q sort in these stories
-N-' Is 10 say, that the author deals with in
-uAefable things in the history Of England
"iieh are duly 70 be found IN the books. But