The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-06-29
taron 10 all through Il, We are confident
that the reader win be pleased.
Miss W1lIeOck'S Striking Story 1.-THE wing
Tea yiotOFy,'

Miss WlIeOck's Striking Story ''The wing.
less VtctOry.''
Miss NJ. p. WiIlcock's sThs WingleBs
Victory (John IApe) although q book Of
unusual literary excellence lie weak in
structure, unduly prolonged by scenic
descriptions and frequently interrupted by
needless morali1ing on the obvious which
suggests the didaotioism Of the teacher
rather than the tolerance Of the humanita-
rian. There are also come overstraiDed
efforts at brilliant writing which mar the
effect. But the next moment she touched
the electric, forces that spin the whirlipg
glNbe Of life down the ages as he closed
his lips on hers and their pulses thrcbbed
! as one IL would have been 30 much
simpler 10 have said HE kissed her.
Miss Wfloock's work is'not q story but a
psychological study OF the dominating
human emotions In which not one but
every character 10 delineated with skill
and comprehension. II. 10 a vivisection OF
actual human beings, not the manikins Of
the ordinary novelist's clinic. The knife is
sharp, the hand steady and sure, red blood
follows the cut and no aDesthetic allays
the pain Of the barred quiverinR nerves. You
see how II all is made up and put together
and how 1t works and suIers-this mys-
teriou thing that we call human nature.
Attention 10 focused upon Whmot Bor-
lace as the heroine o. the story, although
to some Johanna must be the true heroine
and her fate the real tragedy Of the book.
Wilmot i&a small, dark, Oeurotio little wo-
man, overturned and overstimulated by
an indulgent uncle who has, he says, fed
her on meat, not scatlap.' He has given
her heroic ideals Of conduct, but NO but
tresses Of duty or religion to strengthen her
moral character. OF one OF the characters
in the book il 10 written, Her mind was
made up Of odds and ends OF strange reso-
buttons that contradicted each other. 49,
Pigwash, her husband called it 80 Now
the essence Of pigvash is the scrappy
nature Of its construction Tit saying
ia good but misplaced. 1t belongs to VIII
mot herself, with her heroic ideals and i'm
satiRble craving for admiration which che,
like others OF her temperament, dignity
by calling II the desire for Life and Love-
Marrying with a sense Of joyful expert
ment- q buay physician with q Puck like
temper and an amalgam Of the weak and
heroic in character. in three months Will
mot found the experiment neither joyful
nor satisfactory. The old restless longing
returned TO do something mad and bad
and-lovely,' and never having had to pay
the reckoning for such experiments in
emotion, she INDUCES in a Irritation with
a high strung country lad, whose father
had been an artist. The boy attempts
suicide by drowning. but is rescued and
shipped OF to Canada TO pursue the artistic
career for which he had longed and which
| his mother had denied him. Wilmot re-
| ,,r1 &c har horaa hr;nno q Hind child
into the world and attempts to make a
hero OF her husband. DIR. Borlace is a very
modern st. George with a crosscut temper.
His dragon is the contaminated water
supply OF the village. Longing for his
wife's admiration, he persuades the urban
council to bring down the pure water
from the hills by oonniving at their plan
OF using cheap lead pipes. which give the
people lead poisoning. Wilmot despises
him for It and when the blind baby dies
Wilmot goes away and lives alone in morbid
misery until a handsome young farmer
attracts her attention and the performance
begins all over again and would have run
it's course but for Johanna.
The appearance OF Johanna should be
hailed with a fanfare Of trumpets. She is
all that Wilmot dreams and DR.. Borlace
fails to be the truly heroic. Child OF the
slums, drab OF the street, with the birth OF
her baby Elizabeth the instinct Of mother
hood arouses all the moral qualities in
Johanna. DR.. Borlaoe takes her into his
house as a servant. She cares for him with
loyalty after his wife deserts him and his
people turn against him Loving him
fercely, she rejects his advances to her.
She CANDLES the nights through with him to
keep him from drinking, and, leaving her
winnings, goes to bring Wilmot TO save him
and, incidentally, herself at the crucial mo-
ment. The book is said to ave conformed
to the conventional happy ending and TO a
degree il does. Wilmot is reconciled to her
husband; the artist finds a wife; the farmer,
Of whose people it was said: The Hanna
fords never owe O man a farthing or a
woman a wedding ring weds a sweet
faced country girl to be O loving mother to
his children. But when all this is accom-
plished Johanna sits In the sunset fearing
the Judgment Of her child when she knows
the way she came. The book is still a trag-
edy; its theme, t a little child shall leadthem;'
it's lesson, the highway Of the mmo
place leads over the heights OF the sublime.
The compelling interest Of the story lies In its
striking studies OF character and grace and
charm Of style. There 10 a certain ID.
senian frankness in Miss Willcock's treat
ment of the sexual question which is diff
cult to reconcile with the idea OF her being an
unmarried English schoolmistress, but IL
she writes any more bookss as coed as"Widdi-
combe" and The Wingless Victory she will
no doubt give up the school room for the
study.
Captain Cook.
To those who have any knowledge Of the
hiatnrx OF peographical EXPLORATION Capt.