The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-03-21


This seems to be q labor OF love. for
as Q rule Il has little to do with the
story itself: the author simply uses the
opportunity to set down q curious bit
that he has noticed and not infreQuently
some habit or occurrence that he dis
likes. Some readers. We are sure. will
be attracted more by these bits OF OBJ
servation than by tho exciting exploits
Of the more than capable criminal.
Romance aaa Cape Ced.
A legitimate curiosity aroused by the
beginning Of Wilbur Daniel Steele's
storm" (Harpers) will be disap-
pointed through the authors following
excellent literary models In the wrong
place. The scene u pretty clearly
Provincetown. which the author hardly
disGuises by minsiins few erroneous
with other real local names: the ways
are those Of Cape fishermen. and In the
intervals between tho gusts Of romance
these are described correctly enough.
His hero and his hero's people are the
Portuguese from the Azores who have
settled on Cape Cod. a curious and in
teresting race that the writer's OF fiction
have paused over so far.
HAtCT tu0 ttISt CIlhDtSTb tCllI1B VI tuo
hero's boyhood. however. Mr.. Steele
drops the Portuguese entirely. He turns
him into sort Of primeval viking. who
10 also interpretive. He declaims in
Ercles vein. thereby rendering inco-
herent his efforts to express his
emotions. whether tender or violent.
That may do we'll enough for Steven
sons adventurous and long dead Scots
men. but verges dangerously on the
absurd when applied to q Cape Cod
"ginny" fisherman Of the nineteenth
century. There must be good material
in hght in the village street between
the crews Of the porgy steamers and
the native fishermen: II might con-
| ceivably be chanted az a heroic epic
but In tho authors hands 1t turns into
a painful nightmare. We hope Mr.
Steele will tackle the Cape Portuguese
| again, but with q less self conscious
hero. who can keep his literary heroics
bottled up. II II human and picturesque
| material.
The Love story 81 . DOG.
| Following the trail OF ]. London, In
"Kazan" tHarpers) James oliver Cur.
wood undertakes to write a romance OF
dog life In the great northland OF
Canada His hero Is q husky with q
strain Of wolf in him: he ia Q noble
creature. gentle to women and children
but savage with mon. particularly thos<
who beat him. These. We are pleased tc
note. are invariably evildoers. so tina,
the canine hero wreaks poetic Justic,
In bringing them to grief. The humans
appear in the story only to enable the
dog to exhibit his fine qualities. or else
as scientific observers of his proceedings
Early In the tale the dog ls driven b.
Ill treatment into the wilderness. II
fights for the supremacy In pack O
wolves. Stays the leader and wins tn
affections of young gray wolf. Sh
clings to him when his interference 4
behalf Of a man leads to his ostracisr
from the pack. He fights various crea
lures Of the wilderness, moose. otter
beaver and particularly the lynx. On
Of these blinds his partner In fight. an
after that the dogs object In life Is I
exterminate lynxes. The story of hi
wanderings with the blind she wolf
loves Is pathetic and charming. TIL
dogs adventures are as exciting as thos
OF any human hero. and whatever ma,
uralists may think OF II every one VIII
has loved a dog will enjoy the .stor
In spite Of or perhaps because OF l,
sentiment.
Some Recent Fictien.
The uplft Of a young woman frol
prosaic surroundings Is the subject
Maude Lessons 1.-THE Marriage OF c,
ella" 90. p. Putnams Sons). The elal
| crate and lelsurely description Of Il
} middle class respectability from whic
tho heroine Is to be saved will deprei
: the reader as much as II does her,
3 that he will pardon the absurdity OF Il
Incidents that bring about her quixot
marriage to complete stranger. The
: part at once and he kindly removes hin
= self to Central Africa, while she DR.
3 ceeds to expand In the ways she thinl
, desirable. When he becomes blind 81
] seeks him without revealing who she
!. whereupon they gradually fall In 10,
8 with each other and after the necessal
explanations live happily together ev
y after. The story follows another trad
ton Of the British novel In being W,
= written. II the reader can overcome Il
. WEAKNESS Of the first chapters no W
. probably enjoy the book.
n An idyl Of farm life, q plea 10 thu ri