The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-03-14
REVIEWS
OF THE SEASONS
LATEST BOOKS
''Cleek Of Scotland Yard Good Detective Yarn
McCutcheon' New Romance Hashlike Prize Novel,
A Chivalrous Rustic Hero Carolyn Wells Mystery
Story, and Satire Of Oxford in New Fiction.
Brand Whtock's ences-Biosraphcal Study
Of Billy Sunday-Books on Various Subjects.

country boy with streak Of poetry In
him. though she Is ruthless in cutting
short the lives Of his successive wives.
She tells only Of his counting, first as a
boy. then as young man. next when
! well on In life and last as an old man.
his married life she passes over entirely.
Each counting liz different, but he Is
| always manly and tender. The place
is Kentucky, the people are natural.
there Is plenty OF fun and the sentiment
Ia genuine.
The seven short stories by Katharine
| Fullerton Gerould published under
the title "vain Oblations' (Charles
Scribner's Sons) have n distinction in
style and thought that sets them apart.
as Is the case with the most careful OF
| Mrs. wharton's earlier work. All this
admirable literary art, however, IL d.
rected to the analysis OF subtle emotions
/ or shades Of thought which may delight
the representative but will strike plain
people as unhealthy heirsplitting. The
| title story. for instance, Is as hideous a
tale as has been seen in print. the sort
of thing that even II true Is not spoken
| Of and that makes men rage that they
| are helpless to prevent yet the authors
interest Is calmly to dissect the wretched
woman In torture, SO as to ascertain the
precise emotion that guides her action.
| II women who write as the author can
would deign to study humanity instead
Of morbid Psychology. we might have
glimpse OF literature In the fog Of
| printed books.
A mysterious murder Is made to en-
| liven week end party In Carolyn
Wells's Anybody But Anne" 81. 3. Lip
pincott Company. 1t is a singularly un-
pleasant lot Of people that have gath
cred In the country house. and appar-
emily In good society the murder of the
host Is a trifiing matter that does not
break up the party or greatly disturb
the family or guests. After they have
all discussed the matter till the reader
is weary, the author brings In her in
faliihle detective to explain the appar-
ent impossibility. 1t Is as mechanical
and unsatisfactory an attempt at a de.
tective story as we have come across
in some time.
There Is promise In the beginning of
THE Reconnaissance" by Gordon Gardi-
ner tMaomillans). which describes an
",,'' ~ -, ,''. ~, 'na. W
a,,,,. a., , o.
sr,f,s -, as 60 , ' 5000 80
STUDY OF the psychology OF romantic
Englishwoman, II deteriorates rapidly.
, The author. after the nresent dav fash.
ion, enters into amazingly explicit de-
tails Of her married life. which have
nothing to do with the story. His peo-
pie lose all character and the incidents
become purely theatrical. The author
has merely a thesis to prove and a def
milton to give of the English unimagi-
native idea Of courage
The inspiration of the Wild West OF
the moving picture shows breathes In
Caroline Lockhart's The Full OF the
Moon" q. b. Lippincott Company). II
is conceivable that all the unpleasant
things that happen to her heroine might
befall any girl as silly as she appears to
he anywhere. but there SEEM to be no
excuse for libelling Mexicans and West
erners on account OF her stupidity.
Turn about is fair play seems to be
Francis f.. Leupp's idea in writing "A
Day With Father" tCharles Scribner's
sons, a retort to n tale about Mother"
The unfortunate mans msadventures
at the hands OF the women in his family
will evoke sympathetic masculine gibes,
but after all the author makes him
find comfort in one young woman.
DRY as D"st U"'seraiey Life.
Cambridge University. or rather tho
instructors there has annaren,lv iarred
on Humfrey Jordan,s nerves and IN
Carmen and Mr. Drvosdus," tc p
Putnam's Sons) he prinds down aca.
dem,c life under bis nond.rou. ca
tire. He hints thai the cond,t,on NJ
things at oxford is M hatter and M
doubt his filings are appIIcable IN Ameri-
can college communities also In no.
hair Of realism he nuts his converse.
lion. of which there 10 much In tho
dull pedantic form ne imagines his
pedagogues TO use habitually. and tho
dulnesa is inevitably re,ected in his
book. The story describes how a
brilliant and masterfu, woman grad.
ually detaches her pompous but plIahle
husband from the world and the ambi.
tons he has grown m with. and
launches him into n larger snbere The
vif.'a CARLY his,ory uII ba rd,,, .,,ta,