The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-08-02
"IlOuis Norbert"


By Vernon Lee John Lane Company.
Amid the mass of books, good. bad
ana Indifferent. that come to re-
Nicp'cr's taltc. II is = very real delight
Is lind such rare and exquisite blend
Ing Of romance and history as i con-
tanned il Louis Norbert" the latcs,
houl.. and one Of the few works OF
fiction. by Violet rrgct. who under the
name OF "Neruon hcc." HAS contributed
so many charmulr Yet vruditc ESSAYS
to the literature Il the day.
So skiIruuy ir1cvd hps che author
mtcrwyv,n tie authentic with the
purely romautic aul with Sucn dclj-
cate art has Sh" related her unusual
and abSorbng sto-N. tliat II Is quite
impoSsibIc for an" average reader, de-
void Of more Than a scantv knowledge
of the period With which She is SO IA
ipiliar to determine Just where the
novel - historical and where il is
uctioual l;ut This is not TO say that
such inability ON his part Mill annoy
the reader: on the contrary. unless he
ho pedantic litcralist. he will be quite
content to read Louis Norbert" for
the sheer JOY of the reading.
1t is not In tho least a heavy his
toriCal romance. however; it is rather
historical whi1nsy. Imagined and re-
lated by a woman With a poets fancy.
a scholars knowledge aud II super
craftsmar's certainty Of touch.
As the subtitle has il. Louis Norbert"
is - twofold romance. In the eastern
most corner OF the Campo Santo, of
Pisa, the Lady Ncnctia Hammond. who
IS being guided about the ancient city
hy the young .\rclacolo.ist. is startled
10 find a scpulchral slab TO the memory
of one Louis Norbert de Caritan The
inscription. engraved in quaint old
Trench by seventeenth century italian
:toucma SONS, rccitcs the fact tnat
l NnrhCrt al a. lSnnirc
Of Pierre Norbert sicur dc Caritan aud
Claude dc Lcyrac, his wife, OF La Ro-
uhcllc, had died suddenly in Pisa In
1854. being about TO enter the ser
vice OF the l. nG Of England. AMI that
I've was buried, and the slab erected by
the dear friend 81 the nation AMI tho
house of France" the Able Mnnfrcdini.
Rather Il simple inscription after all.
In Spitc of the Nhbc'S queer out -of-placc
announcement concerning his own
friendship Cor the nation aud house
az France. ard not in itself sufficient
10 startlc the sightsccr. Iiut from
her earliest childhood. the Lady
Ncnctla has hocn fascinated by "A por-
irai: Of a beautiful youth. which hangs
in the ghost room of her home, Ar
abingdon Manor. in England. who was
brought up 10y ono al her ancestors. and
who has always boon known as-Louis
Norbert.
She has always wondered who Louis
Norbert was, and instantly she begins
TO weave a talc Of intrigue and trcach-
cry about his death. The young
Archaeologist, fired 10y, her excitement.
also becomes deeply Interested in The
history of thc mysterious Louis Nor
bert. and together they set to work to
study il out. That is. their energies
IRE directed to ttc same purpose.
though they are actually separated,
for the Lady Ncncti;, returns to Eng
land. while the young man remains in
Lisa and il is. for the most part, i'll
q series OF letters that the romance
anj tragedy of the seventeenth, cen
fury are unfoldcd.
III tho imminent room at Arthinrtor
Manner tho Lady Ncnctia pores ovc,
papers and letters more than two ccn-
tUri"S old. Will, in i&e archives of the
pojc" of Florence and PISA, aud in
~" library IF Iu old Italian scholar,
the Marches" NisCardi. the ArChacol-
oEist rursucS his quest The Lady
Ncnotia's womanly intuition is so quick
and embracing, and tho Archaeological
~ SO DESTROYS of completing her story
for her. that again the reader Is likely
10 be a hit puzzled between what is
actual discovery and what is romantic
imagining. Yet, again, he will not
care because the results attained, step
by step, by the Two ScarchcrS in their
Investigations and conjccturcs form
social intrigue ana of dark Roccaccian
tragedy thrilling aud exciting enough
10 satisfy both the student OF seven
teenth century Italy and France and
the mere lover OF romance.
For the solution OF the mystery in
wolves the love affair between Louis
NV. and youn. Maria ManCini, AN ar
fair encouraged by the girls uncle,
the willy Cardinal MazarIn cXpia ins
why one of the Lady Ncnetia's names
is Artemisia. includes an all too brief
account OF the wondrouS great love OF
Louis Norbert de Caritan ana the
crowned poot'sa. aud sets out plainly
The incredible pcriidN OF The Ahbe Man
ircdini
Louis Norbert" rs all Of this and --
merely. by tho waN-it IS also xI inc
example OF tho art Of writing t.hclHSh n.
Faith TrcsiIiop."
BY Eden Phil,potts. The Macmillan
Company.
having forSakcn partmoor for The
;ilne. Eden l'lillpotts has turned IL III"
coast OF Cornwall aS u background for
his latest novel Faith Trcsilou, aud