Evening star., 1912-11-23

hero from the ecclesiastic hall of fame
and placed him in the wide field of litera-
ture "FNerybody's Saint Francis.
This change would doubtless have pleased
Francis. whose love for all creatures was
so ardently pure that there was no
sinner who might not call him brother.
History and legend chronicle the life OF
this saint. who was born in Assist of
rich parentage, and was early inspired to
give himself to God. We know that
birds and wild creatures were drawn to
him because of his loving kindness. and
that he founded the great Franciscan
order and its sister institution, the Poor
Clares. DR.. Egan has done more. He
has drawn aside the centuries that veil
the Italy of 11S1 to show us the pretty
child. the pleasure-loving boy and the
inspired youth, of whom he says: Love
made him poet: love made him a saint;
love gave him life and fire and under
standing and all of the things that were
added to him. The literary charm of
the text is diversified with twenty IL
lustrations, eight of them in color, which
Assist and a study of the time of st.
Francis.
THE FINANCIER; n Novel. BY Theo-
dore Dresser, author of Jennie Ger
.hardt," etc. New York: Harper &
Bros.
Mr.. Dresser applies to this study Of a
methods Of realism that he uses in his
preceding novels. He undoubtedly paints
a most interesting picture, whatever his
subject He fills his canvas full of de-
TAIL showing the features of characters
line by line, with q faithful disclosure
of dress. His interiors are almost pho
tographic in their exactness of furniture
and ornamentation. He is scrupu!ously
careful to make his reader understand
every movement. every motive and every
development, even to the extent of re-
peating frequently to make sure Of COM
prehension. BY the employment of these
modes of story telling Mr.. Dresser now
sets forth the record of a young man of
exceptional financial genius, son of
bank teller in Philadelphia, who makes
phenomenal success in business at the
time of the civil war and following
that struggle. BY emp 'oyment Of meth
ods squaring with accepted business prin-
cipleS, but out of harmony with the high
er moralities of life, he amasses for
tune, but begins to speculate in street
railway shares, using the city's money
placed with him in deposit. Then comes
the Chicago fire, precipitating panic, and
simultaneously an unconventional rela-
tionship that he has been maintaining
outside of his family life comes to light
to complicate his troubles, and the young
hnancier is enmeShed in an apparently
hopeless COIL He is caught by the law
and sent to prison for thirteen months.
and then, upon his release. he starts
again, and, seizing an opportunity sud-
denly presented by the failure of great
banking house, he makes million dol
lars and departs from the scene. AS a
bit of business history this is a remark
able book. As a novel it is by no me ans
the great performance that it has been
proclaimed. Mr. Dresser is not a grip
pingly interesting story teller, but he is
Il remarkably lfelike limner of people
and faithful chronicler of happenings.
the Life of Hussy. BY A. Neil
Lyons. New York: John Lane Com
pany.
Clara is a London flower and soap sell
er. woman of the streets, who has at
one time served sentence in prison for
theft. Claras immortality is not abnor-
NAL, not startling when one accepts the
social conditions surrounding her life.
The story. which is merely an unsequen-
tial series of anecdotes and adventures
is told by young man who was once
IA nursery charge of Clara. Tucked in
between these bits of Clara's personal
history are interudes dealing with the
same sphere of life, the low life of London,
that of the pavement artists. factory girls
curbstone beggars and vendors, told with
"a delightful humor and In a manner to
present the most SHOCKING SOclal cOHul-
tions without offense. Clara cannot
be recommended for young readers, but
1t is calculated to enable large section
of the people to understand better how
the less fortunate classes live.
EL<AN LUBLINER, AMERICAN. BY
Montague Glass, author of potash
+ & Perlmutter;'' etc New York:
Doubleday, Page & Co.
Here in these seven associated tales, by
the author of the delectable Potash &
Permutter' stories. is told the develop
ment of successful American citizen out
of a Russian emigrant boy. There is no
sociological purpose in Mr.. Glass work.
He is setting forth again the amusing.
diverting qualities of the men of the cloak
and suit manufacturers circle, asking
admiration for their charity, their gen.
uine kindliness of heart, their sympa-
thy for those in distress, while exposing
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