The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-09-06

presentation frankly putting forth the Interesting points of large business en- ttrprises. In the chapters which fol- low. al statements of fact have been received from and have been verified by executive officials of the United Fruit company. The deductions of the author stand on his reputation as a student and analyst of issues of public concern. This method will be pursued in the preparation of the books of this series which later will be announced. It is the belief of the publishers that a series or books thus planned will pos sessan interest and have a real value not only to those who are investors in these great enterprises, but also to a public which Is demanding that far reaching corporations shall give an account of their stewardship.
 MRS. yANDERSTEIN' JEWELS" By Mrs. Charles Brice. The John Lane Co.,, Publishers, New York.
 Unlike certain other novels dealing with crime and detection, Mrs. Charles Brice' S clever story, Mrs vanderstein's Jewels, is remarkable for the literary ability of the author. Her sense of character en- ables the reader to obtain a real grasp of the eprsons involved in the mystery, and there is no employment of the time worn methods of incredible development of unsuspected characteristics suddenly revealed. None the less the reader has to speculate continually as to the true culprit and the final outcome. To reveal the plot here would be unfair to the reader. for the story is | most enthrall- ing one.
 Major Sir Gregory Jones, one of the cleverest characters in Mrs Wander stein's Jewels" delivers these strong sentiments:
 Bad habit, drinking water. But now days young men have no heads Show them three or four glasses of port and they say 1t gives them headache Ab- surd! The country is rotten The men can't eat, they can't drink, they can't even dance! They stroll about in a ball room in way that would make you sick. They don't dance double time any more They say 1t makes them giddy! Rotten constitutions, that s what we suffer from nowdays.'
 ''MIDSTREAM"
 By Will Lexington Comfort George H.
 Doran Co.,, publishers, New York.
 The right of a novelist to put his own experiences into a book, a contro versy which wage5 over Upton Sin clair's Loves Pilgrimage." and over Jack London's John Barleycorn." has been revived with heated discussion over Will Levington Comforts amaz- ingly frank new novel "Midstream."
 In "Midstream" Will Lexington Com fort describes life exactly as he has seen 1t as small boy, private soldier, newspaper man. war correspondent and novelist. He tells unsparingly oi ms experience With wine. women and war.
 Is it proper for a novelist. to give way his won life in this manner2 The extensive reviews of "Midstream'' Which began to appear immediately upon its publication seem to take op- posite sides on this question with truly astonishing dissension A number of papers echoed the sentiments of the well known journal in declaring that if would as soon see a fat. podgy gentle man running down the street in his pirthday suit as to see so bold a con- fession on an authors part of having been a drunkard and prodfga1
 On the other hand, many reviewers point out that by the method of mak- ing himself the central character and speaking of himself as honestly as he would of any fictitious character Mr. Comfort has attained perfect sincerity For instance, one reviewer writes:
 Will Lexington Comfort uses an effective method of getting close to real things in his latest book Mid stream, he frankly makes miself his o"h ieauins character, calling himself by his own name and the story Is frankly the story of his own life up to his thirtyfourth year The result is realism, romance, adventure and a pervading spiritual revelation that is to the story part of the book as soul to body. He has lived very good hurly- -burly he has crystallized good adventure novel; in the conclusions and introspections he brings out of the deal of the most modern mystical phil osophy-a religious philosophy that comes back through the things of today to the essential bases of Christianity. It is hard to write of one's self with frankness, and yet without self-con-