Evening star., 1911-08-26

rnOney-tne prime insignia ol
modern life. Taking money ir
its capacity Of capital applied
to industry. the author projects II
In the twofold aspect Of its current
use. On the one hand is the in.
dividualistic conception OF capitalize
one so prohtably exploited by sensa.
tional. half-informed newsmongers-
where frequency of dividends and their
rate are the supreme tests of efficiency
Set off against this is the larger pattern
of service, where capital maintains a
sound ratio between project and fulfill
ment. These opposing phases OF the mat
ter are gathered under the common name
or good business. Each is objectified ac-
cording to US Interpretation of this term
part of the Colorado desert stages the
drama The reclamation Of this waste
moves 1t by means of the rival activities
or these two kinds of good business. AT
the bottom, this novel is thesis on the
true industrial function OF capital As
such, IL aims at fairness of view and
commonly attains it. keeping the right
natures acceptance and only once or
twice making him of the wrong sort. a
little nearer devil than man. The finest
parts or this story lie above this ground
plan. though Immediately dependent upon
H. These are the desert setting and the
people. The former Is poem, lived long
and deeply absorbed The authors finest
and highest drama his most inspired por-
trayal. is OF the desert itself. The latter.
the people, are keenly alive, each moving
in his own personality distinct from the
others. all believeable. Jefferson Worth
the best of this fine group-is man to
remember as the product of amazing in
tuition and descriptive power The ro-
nance. the love story moving through
this drama, Is good one, strong enough
to stand alone. even though one feels 1t
to be matter Of minor concern to the
author.
THE CRUISE OF THE SHARK. BY
Jack London. author Of Burning
YYaytIsh1 Yast , etc; & Illustrated New
Washington: Brentano's.
fine. original adventure, recited in the
very spirit OF it's undertaking. 1t reminds
one over again that Mr.. London is SO
much more himself-and, therefore. so
much more interesting-as a pagan than
he is as reformer. Laboratory pre-
cfsions, statistics about the relative per
capita OF rich and poor, do not chime in
with the roots of Mr.. Londons being.
wide. uncramped spaces do. The love of
himself in relation to the big universe
does So. this cruise of the Shark is en-
tirely in his vein. Were it not tor that
perennially stupefying cruise of the May
flower that makes one take in anything
about sea voyages. this amazing trip in a
homemade ship. with only himself an
would be hard to accept But, owing to
the Mayflower. we believe 1t all. These
people set out to sail around the world
by way of the South seas. Somewhere
out Solomon Island way. Mr.. London,
despite his protean capabilities, took on,
reluctantly, the character of Job. Leprosy
(of a kind fastened to him. 'Yaws,"
whatever 1t. or they. may be-. started to
consume him. His toe nails behaved with
disconcerting eccentricity.' So Mr.. Lon
don, in this accumulation of warnings,
sailed back to Glen Ellen and wrote this
crisp story of adventure. Mr.. London
has curious artistic sense and practice
OF making his writing manner fit the oc-
casion. Now, had he remained at Glen
Ellen or gone to Alaska, one knows that
his periods would have fitted the tune
around him as ii does so admirably in
this sailing adventure: One critic says
does, but why sound like Stevenson,
when one can sound like himself-Hke
London, a-saiiing in the Shark?
OTHER LAWS. BY John Parkinson.
author of "a Reformer by Proxy
New York: John Lane Company.
The particular law that inspired this
story-in the title named "other"-is the
law Of nature. under whose urgency one
seizes what he wants. in large indiffer-
ence 20 statute. The climax OF this ro-
mance-its points that one man takes
another mans wife-she abundantly con-
senting-and the two appear to be about
to set out, together, for Africa. There
the story ends. Leading up to this de-
nouement-in the way OF preparation,
with something like extenuation cropping
out here and there's. an admirable story
OF adventure on the part of two African
explorers and an equally well made pic
~ys-l- all
Very superior people, of serious motive
and useful habit. There is.not frivo-
lous strain in the whole development. So,
one wonders why 1t was made. Back in
school days. when one studied laboriously
"the development of the novel,. he came
out Of the ordeal with neat little pockets
fitted to the different sorts of novel.
Among these was the novel or social
life." Jane Austen it's original guardian.
The recollection suggests that this author
is drawing a picture OF social life as 1t
f1ourishes in the present Not very
good plan for a serious and capable
writer like this one. for. willy-niIly, people
gather support out of these well made
stories. TO be perfectly fair. this writer
must make another story, to show the
complete inferno Of a time that this
woman gathers up out OF her hdelfty TO
the law OF nature. Do what Tolstoy did
with Anna Karenina, or something in
that fashion, for that is the true picture.
NOBODY's. A Novel. BY Virginia
Demarest, author OF THE Fruit OF
Desire" New York: Harper and
Brothers.
The open-work pattern OF this Tennes-
see love story permits tho reader, well
within the first half hundred pages, to
cast a certain eye along its full course
q story Of obvious, out-turned plot. The
taint OF negro blood In southern girl
Of E,lperlatiye beauty and charm Is the
source of this matter. which moves along
with deal of stress and strain, under
a young northerner's growing interest in
this girl. The atmosphere-much the best
part of the whole-rises out of the char
acteristic attitude of the south toward
this locally supreme concern. The end
Of the complex is ingenuously delightful
There turns out, at the last, to be nc
taint at all. but clean, even aristo.
cratic, line instead. with a transported
twain, likely to live happy ever after
The story, in general conception and un-
romanticism. romance reverted to the
fairy tale type, where fulfillments come
along In suave indifference to the condi.
tions set as antecedent. 1t is as IL q
man-one of the Brook Farm sort maybe
-plowed and planted and tended a field
and then at harvest time went out Il
gather from spots alien TO his toil-th.
sea, perhaps. or even the air Yet 81
many OF US are still avid readers of tn,
fairy tale-still lovers of the divinely un
realizable-that one hesitates to set s
mark against these engaging inventions
Therefore he enjoys this youthful story
so careless OF its probabilities and Sc
quences. as pattern of things as the,
ought to come to pass, but never do