New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-04-30

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prosperod exceedingly in life. 20 he over
taken by tragic misfortune ia his old
age The pastoral setting. tho patri-
arcf7al life the literal faith Of these sur
v.vors Of an eighteenth century immlsra-
ton all go TO the strengthening or the
rarallel. The author does not lay on the
local color I'm big bietches for its own
sake: he gives US enough of IL 10 ex-
plain environment and circumstance.
character. custom. conduct and ph;ios-
ophy Of life; he never allows it to dis
tract our attention from the tragedy. OF
greatest interest. perhaps. is the reveal
ton made by this book Of the survival
among us OF Eurcpean-a German
peasantry Elsewhere the peasant i'm
migrant, even Of much later date, has
been absorbed by his new environment.
made American to the core in the third
generation: not so the Pennsylvania
Dutchman. who appears 10 have retained
through the vital years Of our evolution
mere than the customs and ways Of his
ancestry. II is for this reason that
Hearts Contending" invites comparison,
not with American vt with European
fiction. most Of all with the peasant
fiction Of Northern Germany. A book
worth reading. and an author worth
watching.
Long before Kipling sang the ballad
OF East end West Heine told the ale.
CORY Of North and South In his tvo
oustrains Of the Fir and the Palm. and
of the meaning of both there be appl
cations many. tragic and happy, social
and temperamental as well as racial and
geographical. The prince and the con-
tadina, the Italian daughter Of the cir
Gus tent and the son of Puritan New
England, Bohemia and society" these
extremes are brought into conflict in
THE Fir and the Palm" and --anquished
by Love. who knows neither East nor
West. nor North or South-at least not
at first. There is great deal of fresh,
youthful lima gina lion and of poetic feel
| ing in this first novel. and a rush of
enthusiasm for its plot and characters
on the part Of the author that appeals
to the reader and carries him along in a
world that Is unreal below its appear
and atmosphere. But why cry for real
ism when romsnticism is offered US?
The story has the merit of originality:
il is written with conviction and a glow
Of color; it is altogether a most salts
factory first venture in the domain of
minor fiction.
Miss Ray continues to make Quebec
the scene Of her stories. which claim a
modest place i'm the long line Of minor
fiction that presents this world-any
particular spot Of it-as a very pleasant
place to live in, made especially for
wel-bred. well-mannered. happy and
handsome youth and its romance. the
serious business of life being employed
! in IL chiefly to accentuate the bright
lights The plot of "Over the Quick
sands" is serious enough, but, after
mysterious hint Of mystery in the be-
/ ginning. We hear little of II again until
! the end. the long interval being taken
up with vivid pictures of the social
| doings Of the Canadian city. and Of the
winter sports that form one Of its chief
attractions. Miss Rays character draw
/ ing suffices amply for her purpose. and
4 for the young people on whom IL is ex-
pended. IL is done in simple lines, pro-
ducing differentiation in sufficient meas
ure to interest her readers. whom one
Z supposes to be mostly young people
! themselves. Her workmanship is deft
and polished. and her books always have
the crowning quality of gentle breeding.
AS all the possible changes have APP
parently been rung in our current fiction
on the subject of frenzied finance, there
sition from more or less inventive real
/ ism with a more or less serious purpose
/ to the realm Of the frankly fantastic,
disguised as prophecy. Mr.. Chester does
not take his story SO seriously as did
the late Ignatius Donnelly in his
Caesars Column: In fact. he apparently
( is a social prophet only for the sake OF
4 his book, for our entertainment rather
than for our warning against dark days
| TO come. So here is THE Cash Intrigue"
which is begun in Wall Street on a scale
/ to make Insignificant all previous cam
paigns in that fertile field OF the i'm
aEination. and which by its own impetus
J leads straight to the White House and
70 the first American emperor. But step
J by step. IS this man approaches his
/ throne. another conspirator begins his
! secret organization 20 upset him and Il,
and thus. in the very hour of triumph,
| the emperor must do battle for his very
existence. There is more cash, more ready
money, in the vaults Of the master of
! finance Of this book than has ever been
seen by any one of the worlds richest
mon since the beginning of history; he
/ has simply Withdrawn ii from circula-
ton without il appears, attracting the
attention OF our bankers and economists.
/ The originator of the intrigue, he be-
comes its victim, through the man he
trusts even as through him the money
masters daughter becomes the heroine
( Of the revolution. There is plenty of
plot. counterpart. incident and move
ment in this lurd tale. which. II is
hardly necessary to add. has its love
element TO heigh; 81 the effect.
! TIT CnI IrhDN taInseAkI