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

BOOk REVIEWS.
THE GIRLHOOD OF QUEEN VIC
TORIA, Selection From Her
Majesty's Diaries Between the
Years 1882 and 1910. Published by
authority of his majesty the king
Edited by Viscount Esher. &. {: b..
G. c. W o. In two volumes New
York, Longmans, Green & Co.
~HAT part Of Queen Victoria
diary which covers her life
from the age Of thirteen to her
marriage at twenty-one is
merely the simple record OF
any young girls life. 1t is, in the main.
a plain day-by-day writing down OF IN
eventful hours; the most of these con-
scientiously vouched for by the clock.
as-"We have just changed horses at
Barnet. a very pretty little town, .
minutes past " past O." Taken together
out Of fifty, or perhaps hundred ran
dom openings Of these two bulky VOL
umes, the simplicity Of this record de-
lights the reader. as its affection does.
and its good conscience working out In
all sorts Of homely ways, Its fidelity to
tasl<s, and the native serious intent OF
this girl who. in the accident Of circum-
stances turned out to be one OF the great
rulers Of the British empire. No other
part of the life history of the queen can
be more revealing of essential traits of
character than this early diary. Certain
" no other part is so personal as this
one where the natural girl Is not yet OBJ
secured by the queen.
THE REEF, Novel. By Edith Whar-
ton. author Of Ethan Frome, etc
New York: d. Appleton & Co.
The Reef is not so dead black as
ETHAN Frome." 1t is placed in a warm
er, roomier, lighter medium. Aside from
this one grateful easement. however, 1t
does not differ from the earlier story In
general hopelessness of effect. Both illus
trate the authors absorption In the game
of inevitability. To play this game one
chooses some circumstance or episode
almost any one will answer the purpose,
though Mrs. Wharton commonly selects
such as project an outstanding social
question. Having made choice, one 8
business is merely to stand aside holding
himself intent to the memorable move
ment of this circumstances, to its un-
deviating course, to its Tamificattpns and
interwebbings. SOphy Viner snatching
DTlcI ana unSdnCtlONcu HdppiucSS lTOHI a
mans careless hand is the fuse to this
particular train of miserable sequences.
Sophy is merely a little governess. OF
course there Is a~lady of the velvet kind
in this story. There always is in Mrs.
Wharton's stories. And between Sophy
viner and the lady. Anna Leath. is
George Darrow. The development Is
quite up to this authors high tide Of IN
happiness and tOrture-of logical, I'M
avoidable misery. The novel itself is
ho, phy
Vfner, on, the contrary, is a creation of
whom her maker may be justly proud.
THE KEYNOTE. BY Alphonse de
Theodore Davidson. New York:
George H. Doran Company.
The surface interest attaching to 1.-THE
keynote 10 that It Is a winner OF the
Goncourt prize-a fact calculated to
sharpen ones mind both to its excellen-
cies and possible defects. In the perfec-
ton of its molding. In its transparency
and a certain childlikeness of vision, 1t
belongs Enthusiastically to the best type of
French fiction. The Translator. too. has
performed the difficult task of bringing
it across without loss of its peculiar
havors. The tale reads along evenly
about the life Of Monsieur des Lourdines,
a plain man whose uncomfortable love
for everything in the wOrld-all nature,
his neighbors, his household, mankind
everywhere-makes the keynote of his
existence and performs the miracle of
bringing his wickedly selfish and way
ward son back to his fathers house.
Were its art not exceptional, its sincerity
not complete, a story running in this
channel might easily become dilute and
mawkish. But both art and sentiment
combine here to make a singularly fine
and beautiful romance.
THE MORALITY OF WOMAN. By
Swedish by Mamah BOuton Borth-
wick. Chicago: The Ralph Fletcher
Seymour Company.
Toward the end Of the twentieth CEN
fury only, according to the calculations of
Ellen Key, can the type of woman pro-
jected by the nineteenth century reach
its elimination, and a new type begin to
appear. This. upon its face, seems an
enormous grant of time for the present
storm and stress period Of woman to set
tie into the new and productive social
order outlined by the struggle on hand.
Still, nothing else-that is, no material
thing-is so closed to change as human
nature. Without doubt, Miss Key Is right
in giving this amp4e room for growth.
But what of the meantime in these hum
dred years? How are wOmen-if they can
do no better-to stand aside SO as not TO
delay this inevitable outcome? Miss Key
says It is to be done by steady I'M
provement of the morality of woman.
Now, when Miss Key talks about moral
ity she is fronted squarely and unalter-
ably upon the race--upon the quality OF
the children of the next generation, and
upon those OF the next and the next Be
tween her and this end no mere surface
matter is permitted a hearing. To her
there Is but one question. What condi-
lions assure the best children? To be
sure. one sees a mountain of practical
difficulties between her Then and our
Now Yet she has much to say for
women to ponder. Her Immediate demand
upon them is for courage and truth
qualities In which women are logically
historically-deficient. Truth in the ad-
mission of that which they have been
vigorously taught to hide. Courage to
act according to the demands OF this
fundamental truth Out of this admis-
sion and practice will grow the free per-
sOnahty. operating In every sort Of way
toward truth and human righteousness.
One needs little arithmetic to calculate
the tremendous human fruitions II. in
Tartably. reality were to take the place
OF appearance. substance were to sup