The Washington herald., 1912-10-20

-, 80 ~ husS ~ q Il .x,,sS ~
yfS61pl4 with the I'D. q Ali1e a.
Ps0etoS N1nnAe6s 70 eo66pe. 66fh IL
prison in which he has bean coa0ned
for several years. the. 0cene ~ eh11ae
10 Virginia. whore the arDttocfAts. IN
their old mansions. with their slaves and
hosssss open an entirely different vein.
But Il 10 not the peaceful life Of vir-
ginia that appeals to Francois. and soon
vs nnd him back In France. standins
shoulder to shoulder with Louis Napo-
leon. In the fruitless effort 70 win back
the crown Of the empire. That he does
mot succeed II owing to overzeal. and
that he meets death In -hghting fof, the
cause be loves brings with II IL con-
ISOLATION: for Francois. dies nfm In the
dslusion that his love dream has. 1T last
coma true. and that no IL indeed mar
shal Of France. under another Napoleon" "
sUBHNE sKrToHD:. By stsAa. Le.@ek.
P1bdshsd b John LAns Company. Nsw Yck
= You would never guess from these
chuckling little sketches that Stephen
Leacock IL = professor of c''the dreary
science" 1t Is evident that his position
- head Of the department Of economies
and OF political scaencs At Aeain uni-
versity has had not the least depressing
effect upon his own temperament. His
previous books have won for him, the So
briQuet Of "the Canadian Mark Twain"
But that he hardly deserves: quantity
amusing. though. he 10 the skiilful user
somatimes OF q method that is some
thing like Mark Twain's own distinctive
process, for the Inspiration Of laughter.
He himself has too keen q sense Of humor
not ia know that In comparison. with the
beloved American his own blade OF Wit
u dull and the Ssparkle. Of his humor q
faint giimmer. Nevertheless, IN this ss-
fies Of sketches Of the people and the
incidents In q little Canadian town there
arc refined humor and a deep underlying
human kindliness. But their chief char
acteristic Is the disguised. tolerant sar-
casm with which. with perfect eouanim-
ity. he recognizes the weaker and the
baser streaks in human nature. and In
stead OF sneering at them Is moved only
to chueklinK amusement. II il the dis
tinctive feature Of Mr.. Lfacocks humor
and the one that he will do best to cul-
uvate-that and the faculty for unex-
pected. facetious. Mark Twain-like turns
OF, thought and expression with which
he embellishes his entertaining preface.
A WOMAN OF GENIUS: BY Mary Austin. Pub
lisAed b. Doublsday. Psss 4 Co. Nov YGt-
Mrs. Austin states her theme pictur-
esQuely. but not quite adequately. when
she says. on one OF the first pages Of the
book: This IL the story Of the struggle
between a genius for tragic acting and
the daughter Of a county clerk. with the
social ideal Of Tayiorville. Ohianna. for
the villain" For the tale goes far moro
deeply and more keenly into the realities
Of the life of to-day than the sentence
gives the reader a right to guess The
novel IL photographed In form. and
tells the story Of famous actress from
the days of her childhood through all the
practical and emotional struggles which
filled her life as she tried to fulhll at
the same time the social ideal OF Tay-
lorville," and the urge Of the wings OF
genius. But at bottom II 10 searching
and brilliant analysis, dramatically per-
sonified. Of that battle with swords which
the feminist movement has made pos
sible in the heart OF many woman Of
this present time. The contest between
the ideals Of the old and new genera
tions. between fathers and sons, Is age
long. Every oncoming generation nights II
over again in some fresh form.
Olivia gets on tr!umphantly. though at
the cost of some scars, when she does
battle only with the social ideals OF
Taylorville." But when the spirit OF art.
the genius of which she 10 the vessel,
must cross swords with racial instincts
In the person OF the man she loves. de-
manding that she keep his house and
bear his children. and her own heart
recognizes and responds to those In
stincts-then the blades strike deep. For
not only genius but opportunity as well.
the age In which she lives, has made OF
her two women-one who is willing and
the other who refuses to be submerged.
Mrs Austin tells the story with deep
knowledge of human nature, and with
an individuality in her way OF looking
at things that affords the reader many a
delightful surprise.
ALL THE YEAR ROUND: By J.me. whiteomb
Rig. Published By the Bobs~Merrin Company.
indianapolis Illustrated. Price. C0.
An admirable combination Of poetry
and art Is "All tho Year Round" the
new James whitcomb Riley gift book
which has just been issued in commem-
Grafton Of Mr.. Riley's birthday. 1t is
unique In every respect. q triumph Of
the bookmaker's craft. for an artist has
been found who. though the medium
Of line and color. Is able to do justice
to the sweet and homely quality Of Mr..
Riley's dialect verse.
Gustave Baumann. who has given his
artistic skill to the making Of this book
is the exponent Of a new art-that OF
cutting a picture on wood. 1t might
he said that he draws with . knife. the
complete picture being carved into the
key block from which five other blocks
are cut. one for each color used In the
Illustration. From these wood blocks d.
rect the picture il printed.
For 'An the Year Round twelve Riley
poems have been selected. one for each
month Of the year. These poems. keenly
expressive of the emotions OF the chang
ing seasons. are, like all Of the poet S
best work. intended to strike the respon-
sive chord in the breast Of those who
love nature in her constantly shifting
moods and colors. Mr.. Riley has such a
complete mastery Of the keyboard of
human thought that he is able to play
upon It at will In tones that are true and
faultless. The verses which go to make
up this. his latest book. have been well
chosen. and bring a smile to the lips or
a tear to the eye, as the poet Wills.
"All the Year Round Is a radical de-
,parture in gift books. There 10 free
dom, simplicity. and breadth Of treat
ment in Mr.. Baumanns work that Is
reminiscent Of some Of the early masters
Of wood engraving. Yet. Notwithstanding
this, there Ii pleasing and quaint origi-
nality which Is distinctively American
and fitting for Mr.. Riley's- poems. The
text is all done in drawn letters. which.
with the unique decorations. make this
the first great American gift book to be
handled in the new art mode that Is
sweeping the world Of art and architec-
ture.
MORNINGS WITH MASTERS OF ART: By H.
H. Powers Published By the Macmillan CO@-
psny. New York. Illustrated. Prics. Y