The San Francisco call., 1906-06-03

Those who have read The Way OF
the North published last year, will
be glad TO see the announcement OF an
other BOOK by the same hand His new
work is called the The Challenge" Mr..
Warren Cheney has earned his right
10 an audience as large as that part
OF the hook-reading public which
cares for work having the distinct lit
erary touch. That does not mean such
an overrefirennent in the way of saying
things that the author grows careless
Of what he has 10 say. There is action
in Mr.. Cheney.s work. People do things
and events move with reasonable
swiftness TO a definite climax Yet
there is nothing OF the sensational
about it, and none of the superficial
use Of few foreign or antique phrases
to give the historical" flavor to
Beadle dime grade of incidents
saThe Challenge is a story of the
Russian DAYS in alaska, but as COM
pared with The Way. o. the North" il
is more Of the pure romance Its
action takes place in the days Of Ba-
ranoffs presumably, and yet no historic
parsonage figures in its pa ges. and no
attempt is made TO make il seem like
4 history. The draw al the entrance
10 Ltua Bay. one Of the principal
characters" in the story. may or may
not have any real existence on the
Alaskan coast Whether Il has or not.
Mr.. Cheney has given il a place in
literature so real that geography may
be ignored. This whirlpool that forms
IN the entrance "a the harbor only at
the turn OF the tide Is felt through
out the %hoie story 90 be there.
whether is is spoken oS on the immedi-
ate page oS not
The readers interest ia Ivan Egoro-
vitch's transferred affections begins
frs-V
that trsEsfefability is an undesirable
quality. but il is so Ear from rare that
II does not. command. instant attention.
The yOun ger sister, however. gives her
inherited lover a sufficient testing to
make Us confident az the end that he
VIII Change no. more. II is a pretty
Aove story and daintily told.
But none of the things yet mentioned
Couch the deepest interest in the story.
she one chat has rightly been chosen
g give ehe book its name. That is in
che baftle between things temporal and
Shlngs SPirituals' as represented BIZ
Lieutenant Mikhan Etolin and the old
Sriest, simeon Gvasdef Etolin is in
command Of the post and represents
fne autocratic power Of the Gar The
priest comes seeking his son-Russfan
priests are not snecessarify celfbates-
eniy 70 ind a corpse. At the funeral
services he finds that his boy has been
slain by the order of the lieutenant. il
20 q appears, and for cause. The father de-
G-ares war on the slayer, using such
GnostlE- weapons as prayer and evil
prophecl- BY these means he plays
on the superstitious fears Of the people
. the post and the mind of Etolin
himself
Il would not be fair to tell the plot
OF the story more in detail. but it is
worked out with great care. and a
oellcate shading that is delightful OF
the antique favor in wording there is
not so much as ia Mr. Cheney's for
mer book There is a much less care
fuzzy wrought style. and occasional
.4apses into collOqufal expressions that
are so modern that they jar a bit But
the antique flavor is there all the
time in the mental attitudes of the
people, and in their unquestioning be-
4iel n the efficacy Of the old priests
LITTLE prayer bell
How the priests -.lallenge" is taken
UP and the results OF the strange diIeI
OF minds and how Ivan and his
Motyra are bound up in the results
how the draw plsys its silent but pow
erful role up 10 the final catastrophe
these. things, with many a charming
episode by the way and many we'll
drawn subsidiary characters, make M
a strong story More OF unity and dra-
matte force more of the skill OF the
story-teiler IL has than The Wav of
the North less Of serious study into
history and conditions Of olden
Alaska and less Of conscientious work
IN the unfaAlng adherence to the an
tque style II is hard to say which
OF the two books viii win the larger
number Of readers, but the two to-
lEether make up a body OF work that
might be envied by any Western writer
OF to-day, bar none.
If the Urging of the publishers do
not make Dir. Cheney hasten too much
70 add, another title 10 his list. his
thlrd novel ought TO be a literary
event OF great magnitude
d G ;. GREENE, Oakland Public Library
tbobbs-Merrill Company, Indianapo-
lis, Ind. SI50)