Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-07

plant form, the essential were to crowd
out the trivial and unimportant This.
in effect. Is the whole of Miss Keys ar.
gument-that the trivial shall be set aside
for the real.
ON EMERSON. And Other Essays. By
Maurice Maeterlinck. author of THE
Treasure Of the Humble" etc.
Translated by Montrose J. Moses.
New York: Dodd, Mead & Co.
Maeterlinck. writing about these three
Emerson. Novalis and Ruysbroeck-is the
disciple publishing his debt to a group Of
avowed masters. These four-pretty
much of a hnd-come together here In a
comparison Of kindred theories about tn
div1dual life in It's relation to the great
complex of unseen forces about It, in its
dependence upon these hidden influences
The outloOk-or better. the inlook-of
these philosophers takes little reckoning
of our common material guides. Their
accountings are cast in different lines
from ours Their substance is to us mere
shadow. To them. our reality Is the In
visible. Intangible self Of which each of
US Is. for the most part, unconscious So
when one Of this sublinlate four sets out
to explain the other three or rather to
explain himself by way Of the other three
the plain unmystic man, born and reared
on the outside Of things, makes little
more than a tortoise following Of the ex-
position Except that this intensified
four-angled illumination of Maeterlinck
himself does set out more clearly his con-
ception OF man as the resultant of I'M
seen forces. of invisible powers. 1t also
serves further to make Maeterlinck's ap-
proach to the drama more Ineligible
mental theory Of individual existence
One is in debt here to Montrose ]. Moses
for clean-cut outline Of Maeterlincks
service to both philosophy and literature
THY ROD AND THY STAFF. BY Ar
thur Christopher Benson. fellow Of
Magdalene College. Cambridge; au-
thor Of THE Upton Letters" etc
New York: G. p. Putnam's Sons.
Arthur Benson's writings have been of
such frequency and appeal as to bring
to many a sense of personal friendship
and obligation toward this broadly human
man, and to make each new book of his
something to watch for eagerly. Few
writer's, one thinks, make the path be-
tween themselves and readers SO short
as Mr.. Benson does, SO direct, SO warm
with sympathy and comprehension. And
In this new volume there Is no path at
all. The touch is immediate. the COM
munion instantaneous. Arthur Benson
has done many fine and helpful things.
man tells vital truth about himself.
tells 1t plainly and circumstantially SO
that one may, If need warrant, tally him.
self by this revelation and get his own
bearings by this true and dependable
chart-why. that man has given the
best possible service. has done the great
est thing that man can do This Is a
record and a confession. 1t is, first, the
record OF "a sad and strange adven-
ture"-a two-year adventure into the
Ior nd of CT
melancholia. A place where old land
marks were no guide. a desert where the
spirit languished athirst An amazing
revelation, which many reader may use
to mark his own steps through the dark
underways of ill-heal;h. 1t is next-and
this Is the great point-an explicit &C
count Of emergence into a new world,
with a sense Of life renewed, of old
hopes restored and widened. Of fresh glad
prospects Of the soul, of new harnesses,
evaluations in which much Of no import
Tell away to make room for broad and
unlumbered truths. The points of con-
fession are what the reader denies. He
denies Mr.. Benson's estimate Of his old
motives and purposes and attitudes.
Denying the confession. he, however,
gains new faith in the confessor and new
futures for this writer and his readers
alike Some books are inspired for daily
needs. This is one Of them.
THE WIND BEFORE THE DAWN.
BY Dell II. Munger. illustrated by
Thomas Fogarty. New York: Dou-
bIeday. Page & Co. WASHINGTON:
Woodward & Lothrop.
Much of the current fiction Is written.
as this novel is. to picture some aspect
OF the new ideal that is slowly supplant-
ing the old pattern Of marriage. THE
Wind Before the Dawn" keeps pace with
the progress OF John Hunters wife out
OF complete dependence upon John Hum
Ter Tor food. clothing and shelter. for the
privilege to go and come at will, for
friends and place In the community,
into the beginnings Of a full economic
and social partnership between the hus-
band and wife The story is a transcript
OF Kansas ranch life. with the ranch
much what the farmhouse of the east
was nifty years ago. A compact, unde-
Waiting line Of homely incidents and
actions sums here to the penetrating
study Of vigorous personality reacting
against obstructive conditions. The de-
velopment Is so plain and unpretentious
that 1t. upon the surface, appears I'M
eventful Immediately. however, comes
the realization that this is more than
story. 1t Is evidence, unassailable human
evidence OF breadth and appeal drawn
into an uncommonly strong domestic
drama.
THIS STAGE OF FOOLS. By Leonard
Merrick, author of Conrad in Quest
OF His Youth" etc. New York: Nit
chell kennerley.
In a threadbare world. where every
blessed thing imaginable appears to have
been done over and over again, it Is really
astonishing what a hopeful tang Of new
ness and originality Leonard Merrick Is
able to give to his short stories. Expert
craftsmanship and an engaging manner
go into these stories. On these oiled