New-York tribune., 1909-12-11
FICTION.
Nee Stories, Mostly of 4mer-
lean Life.

he civil War BN ktnudM fdttl1iA-
Illustrated IN FUN color by Alonzo kim
hall I2mo. PIP 3sl. Chicago: \. {.
McClurg & CO.
RHODA OF THE T-NDERGROCNp. BY
Flora Finch Kelly. Illustrated by ne
Kinneys. lemO. pp. S76. The Stursls
& Walton COmpany-
THE DENAGOGUE. BY William Richard
Hereford. i2mo. pp S64- Henry hoi'
& Co.
NORTHERN LIGHTS BY Sir Gilbert Par
ke- Illustrated. l2Ino. pp. S72. Haf-
per & Bros.
THE LORDS OF HIGH DECISION. BY
Meredith Nicholson. Illustrated by Ar
thur I. Keller l2mo, pp. So'' bouoie-
day. Page 4 Co.
Frontispiece. l2mo. pp- $40. Dooa'
Mead * CO.
The plot Of My Lady Of the South
tale of adventure. would serve as well Tor
almost any other historical period and
almost any other country-whicn does
no, prevent IL from being fully as ex-
citing and romantic in the setting chosen
by the author, the mountains % ZEN
ne.see. where a blood feud RACES Inc
title will suffice to indicate that North-
ern soldier is the hero: one expects thaI
Kind OF fate for Lady OF the sOuth
in a story Of the Civil War the reverse
for lady Of the North. and would be
disappointed il things did not turn out
that way. Adventures begin 10 befah
the hero the moment he is left wounded
within the Confederate lines after a de-
feat The possessor OF important in
formation regarding the enemys plans
he is delayed in their transmission 10
his chief by the lady. whom he escorts
IN the dark of night across the noun
tains TO a remote manor house. imper-
sonating a Confederate officer He sue
ceeds in reaching headquarters. Is sent
out in command of a scouting party. rs
made prisoner I'm the manor house. ac-
cused Of an atrocious feud murder and
saved from instant death by the lady.
uhereupon begins a series Of mysterious
murders in the house. which he attempts
10 solve amid the alarums n guerilla
warfare. in which he must needs take
part. II is all cleverly planned. and car
ried through with the vim necessary 20
make the story go" from beginning 70
end
Ohio IS the scene Of Miss Keny's tale
OF a fnflllltL uFAWN-ia NV anu hAtAg III
the days Of the underground railroad
The heroine is a member Of a household
divided against itself. she and her father
being active AbolitiOnists. her mother a
Southerner who is kept in ignorance Of
their work in behalf Of the fugitive
slaves. her sister a pronounced advocate
Of the cause Of slavery, and her suitor
is a slave owner. whose fortune depends
upon the fruit Of their labor. The great
issue Of that period is vividly presented
in It's narrower. personal bearing. its
direct relation 10 the individual lives of
men and women. and il gives a good
picture Of the devices and wavs. the sue
cesses. failures and dangers Of the
friends of the negro in their efforts 10
forward the goods 10 Canada A book
which viii make excellent reading for
older girls. it is so sane and sound in its
presentation Of a case of young and en-
thusiastic conscience exposed 10 the lure
~ first love. so convincingly on the side
uf character and the right
The leading characters i'm The Dema-
gogue." a story Of American national
politics. are so thinly disguised that none
can fail TO recognize the originals from
which they are drawn. or. in the recog-
milton. 10 omit 10 add in the proper place
the proverbial pinch OF salt 10 the sen
sational dish set before him. The dema-
gogue. as preliminary announcements Of
the book have sufficiently Informed us. is
the owner Of a chain Of yellow papers.
who. with the aid Of their appeals TO the
masses. seeks 10 secure the nomination
for the Presidency. supplementing their
influence with the most telling OF all
practical political arguments free
Use Of his great wealth. He purchases
delegates everywhere; he buys the boss
Of New York. hut its District Attorney
cannot he bought. and becomes his chief
opponent Mixed with the facts of re-
cent political history. but slightly rear
ranged. there is good measure Of melo-
dramatic fiction. The story is readable
in a way. because il serves up the famiI-
lar in highly colOred. unfamiliar guise.
and. of course. roman a clef' always
has its attractions for the curious. but
The DemagOgue'' has no claim 10 be
added TO the short list Of our political
novels Of the first rank. two Of which. by
the way-"Democracy" and THE Hon.
Peter Stirling bear the imprint OF tie
publishers Of this book
Northern Lights" Is a collection OF
seventeen stories OF the Great Northwest.
dealing with two different periods 90 its
uast. the FIRST. with the Indian. the
trapPer. the trader. thc smuEEler ana the
outlaw. IA the days before the organiza-
tien ~ the territory by the government
and tho coming of the Mounted Police.
the days when The hudson's Bay Com