The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-02-14
Literary Lights and ShadOhs
BY S. MAYS BALL


 Young Girl by Dolf Wyllarde. John Lane Co.)
 DoIf Wyllarde wrote a very striking book last year called "Mafoota," with scenes. most of them laid in the island of Jamaica. where this author now resides. This new book, "The Love Story of a Young Girl" is quite in line with most of the books sent forth by Dolf Wyllarde; that is they are usually worth while. It really is difficult, though, to discover in reading "Rose-White Youth" just what the author is driving at, other than the simple tale. In most of her books the reader can see the moral or something on that order, but in this new book there doesn't seem to be much of teaching or moral in it, other than this pronun- ciamento, to-wit;
 There is nothing that men and women handle so earelessy or so eoarsely as love; yet there is no one, l suppose, who will not learn to say at some time in their existence that 1t was the one thing that made life bearable. l do not under rate riches for there is very little in this world that cannot be bought. certainly do not under-rate work. for it will prove a friend, a saviour and an opfate when other help fails or the success which IS the right stimulant for further effort.
 But when we look back through the long, tired years, we don't dwell on the dinners we have eaten or the sport we can no longer follow; we don't even care very much for. the accomplished deed; the people who shared our pleasure, our dear dead for whom we labored-that one per sonality that filled the universe through but brief tlme-these are the memories that we could not spare.
 And for those who have missed love and vet hungered for 1t God help theml They are beyond help of man. The above is the keynote Of Rose White Youth" handled in Dolf Wyllaroes clear cut, pleasing way. As stated. there isn't much basis for this story; it deals with Betty, school girl, something of a combination of tomboy and sleeping beauty princess. A
 Betty thought she was the daughter of one man when she wasn't That was the first killing blow Betty had at the age of IS. Then she had loved in kittenish- or better expressed, calf-way a young brother of her schoolmate, whom she, had visited during the holidays.
 The truly-ann lover was Captain Rugby. much older than Betty, an explorer. climber of mountains, writer of books, and all that sort of thing, who fell des- perately in love with Betty when he was about 40 and she about 15 years of age. Rugby was too young to have his second childhood, nor were there any other signs of paresis evident in Rugby, other than
 
 with Betty, 20 years or so younger than himself
 Of course the story, founded on Robert Kitchens:
 "Rose-white youth,
 Passionate, pale
 A singing stream in fiowery dale J A fairy princess in a prosy tale There's nothing In youth so finely frail
 As rose-white youthp'
 deals with Betty's awakening, her sor- rows, her they've broken your doll, know; and your tea set blue"-all things . of long ago. Even when love comes in Betty is made to cry out:
 Give me back my chitdhoodr sighed the girl to the boy
 With my doll went all my blisses, I am tired of your kisses,
 And this thing is only sorrow that you
 told me was a joy
 Betty had a hard time of it, as all mis- understood lovers do Captain Rugby misunderstood Betty and was called from his asleep-at-the-switch condition too late. Betty had been thrown from a horse and died from that accident
 Dolf Wyllarde's books are always worth while reading. You may not find this new volume up to the standard of the others; you may wonder just why it was written; but you will agree that now that 1t has been written, Dolf Wyllarde has done the best that could have been done with the theme.
 '"rhe Art of Natural Sleep" by Lyman P Powell rector of St. Johns church. Northampton, Mass. co. P. Putnam's Sons)
 Insomnia is the curse of those who are overwrought by work and care and unites with bad nerves to wreck the happiness and physical wel-being of thousands of people. Of all the ills that flesh is heir to insomnia is about the limit-and then some.
 On the other hand we do not have to live in Missouri to be shown that restful sleep Is as indispensable to all people as it is elusive to some. Such being the case a books that tells men and women how without the use of destructive drugs, to capture sleep is boon to thousands
 Speaking of the necessity of sleep, Dr. Powell says: No man goes for even three days and nights without sleep ex- cept he pay penalty in mental equipoise and death itself is apt to bring his misery to an end 1t is claimed in five sleepless nights and days. Professors Patrick and Gilbert of the University of Iowa found some years ago, that in certain cases there were after two nights of complete wakefulness, Authorizations, loss of at tention, inability to remember and un- mistakable evidences both of mental dis organization and physical depression
 The occasional genius like Napoleon may perhaps get on habitually with four hours of sleep each night, and the mother watching by the sick bed of her child may go for weeks in an emergency with but an hour or two of sleep at intervals, in- frequent and irregular. But the sensible division made by Alfred the Great into eight hours for sleep, eight hours for work, eight hours for play, will be as far as possible observed by the right-minded and far-seeing everywhere"
 Dr. Powell has given In his new book Definite directions for the wholesome cure for seeplessness, illustrated by cases from clinics in Northampton and else- ST0p nRINKINCl