Evening star., 1914-12-26
BOOK REVIEWS.

bum MVItM.
THE THREE SISTERS. By May Sin
clair. author of THE Divine Fire."
etc. New York: The Macmillan
Company.
~HE story of May Sinciairs
new novel is that of the WOO
ing of the country doctor by
the three daughters of an
English curate. Buried in an
obscure and negligible parish. where
the young physician is literally its only
marriageable man within their class,
these three girls, to the extent OF a
very ingeniously prolonged novel, set
their snares innocent and otherwise,
for the capture of this only available
male. The Three Sisters" is the novel
ization, in this writer's frankest vein.
of Bernard Shaw's open and persistent
contention that the female, under the
urge of instructive and primal neces-
sity. is the pursuer and that the male
is the helpless one in this unequal con-
test. In a word, the story is a very
frank and highly elaborated study of
The sex impulse embodied in three
women of such widely differing temper
ament and personality and character
as to constitute three distinct types
of female aggression against the male
The book is as cleverly conceived and
produced as it is unpleasant to read.
And this is very high praise indeed for
the intellectual and constructive ability
of the author.
KENT Knowles: Quahaug. By
Joseph c. Lincoln, author of "Cap'n
Dams Daughter" etc. illustrated
by J. NJ Marchand. New York: ID.
Appleton G. Co.
Mr.. Joseph Lincoln has just one start
ing point for story. This is some
where in the close vicinity of Cape
Cod. AS a rule, too. he holds through
out to this region, and, as a result of
this readers of his novels have come
into Il feeling of intimate at-homeness
with the Cape Cod folks. This time,
however, after getting a good running
start in background and motive from
the Massachusetts coast, he transports
the hero. Kent Knowles, and his spin
ster cousin. Miss Hephzibah. to Eng
land, where the story develops in Lon
don and its near neighborhood. An
ambitious plot of romantic design lies
Al the bottom of this adventuring from
Bayport, Mass, to English city and
country life. An orphan niece of Miss
Hephzibah is discovered in London.
The beauty and arrogant childishness
and preposterous claims of this girl
draw out most engagingly the best
qualities of the soft-hearted pair from
Cape Cod. In the course of time, how
ever, the maze of misunderstanding, so
skillfully woven by the author, fades
away and a very pleasing love story
glides into its place. The best of the
adventure lies, without doubt, in the
friendships set up between this pair
from Bayport and the English gentry
among whom they temporarily settle.
Here are whole pages and chapters of
admirable humor made out of the con-
trasts existing between these two
groups. In these differing points of
view and modes of action Mr.. Lincoln
has held his hand light, to avoid the
over-emphasis that would have been as
fatal to his effects as it must have been
well-nigh irresistible in temptation.
MAY IVERSON'S CAREER. BY Eliza
son Tackles Life.'' etc. New York:
Harper and Brothers.
To judge from the closing scene here
/ this is the last that the public is like
) " to see Of May Iverson. For, at this
point, very convincing young man is
proposing marriage to her, with every
known sign of success. And May Iver-
son, even under the monotones of do
mestic life, is the last girl in the world
TO break out in flirtations, or bridge,
or militancy, or to reneague on her job
by refusing to have children. or to de-
velop that excess of over-soul which
only browsing in strange pastures of
new thought. or old thought revamp-
ed, can satisfy. In a word, she is far
too sound to do any one of the thou
sand and more things that married
women do to make them eligible as
heroines OF modern novels. So, it is
hof II i-s t1,r lost
son. Pity, too Through the good Of
fees of Elizabeth Jordan we have
known her as little girl, big girl, and
now as young woman. She gets bet
ter all the time. In this career" as
news reporter. she is the center of all
sorts OF adventure. Making stories
out of the scenes in police court,
down in Kentucky doing the feuds
and feudists. writing up haunted
houses and unraveling other mysteries,
befriending street girl. rescuing
Maria Annunciata,' baby angel lost
IN the depths of a city fog; taking
turn with the suffragettes, and finally
emerging as a successful novel writer
and playmaker-these mark the high
points in this interesting career. And
through it all she is fine. up-stand-
ing. no-nonsense girl, who does one
world OF good just to see her go by
The book is spring of humor, bub-
bling clean and clear. And its pity is
as simple and tender its fun is out
right and wholesome. If one could
he captious about so hearty a story he
might hint that honors are too easy
here, even for a May Iverson But one
is not disposed to find any fault with a
book that is bound to bring fresh
fund of enjoyment to readers who are
Young and to those also who are not SO
roung.
LIFE IN AMERICA ONE: HUNDRED
YEARS AGO. BY Gaillard Hunt.
Lift. D. IL d. illustrated. New
York: Harper and Brothers.
This book is part of the celebration
Of the century of peace between Great
Britain and the United States Written
by request for this Office its purpose
is to supplement other and more par
ticular studies of this period of peace
by series of pictures that shall give
an all-round view of the general life
Of that time. Innumerable sketches,
showing how the people of this country
lived at the beginning of the nine
teenth century, make up the bulk of
this volume. Their tastes customs
manners. dress. amusements, means of
going about. attitude toward the poor
and the sick, punishments for Iawless-
ness and crime. slavery and education
are among the elements that come into