New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-06-20
SHORT STORIES.

SHOHE o'OH'E0
THE RETURN or THE PRoDIGAAL
Nv NAV Sinclair i2mo, pp. SoZ. Ihe
Macmillan Company.
VAIN oBLATIoNs. BY kathar,ne
Fullerton Gsrould' s Iamo' w.
THE COST OF WINGS. BY Richard
Dehan. 12mo. PIP 313. Frederick A
Stokes Company
FORUM STORIES. Selected by Charles
Vale l2mo. PIP. 344. Mitchell Ken
nerley.
IDYLLs OF A DUTCH VILLAGE. By
S Uifers. Translated by - VII y,
hanson Napier. l2mo PIP. es'' H. -
Dutton e. Co.
An authors short stories. written at
different times and in different moeds
and circumstances, may, when brought
together in book form. prove to be n
severe test Of his reputation. and az
the same time only confusing meas
ure Of his talent. Thus one lays down
with somewhat mixed impressions Miss
Sinclair's Return of the Prodigal" The
matter Of the technical classification
OF its contents is OF minor considera-
ton. One readily admits that the clos
ing story. THE Cosmopolitan" is not
a short story at all but novel in short
and yet is truly grateful to the author
for a remarkable piece Of work-the
best, with "Thc Wrexham Memoirs in
the volume or the two. indeed, we pre-
fer the latter, which, in conception and
execution, is worthy Of Henry James,
a bit of true art that is a permanent
contribution to the riches Of the genre
in our language. Since the Master mas
been, named, the reflection is unaVoid-
able that, while Miss Sinclair's longer
fiction bears no direct traces of his IN
1uence. these stories constantly suggest
It. THE Gift" for instance reads ike
n James story that does not quite
come off," notable though It be; and
in Miss Tarrants Temperament,
which, too, suggests a possible Henry
James motiv, Miss Sinclair is entirely
at sea. The Return of the ProdigaF
is in no way a remarkable perform
ance, THE Fault" striking example
of the value Of reticence and elimina-
ton, of economy OF means. This quiet
tragedy is allowed to happen before
our eyes without the authors interfer-
ing comment. Appearances Is not
worthy Of the company it keeps here
Finally one returns to THE Cosmopol-
itan," an amazingly subtle and consist
- al zt11d Mt of
woman's character and Of the awaken
ing of her long dormant temperament
At her best Miss Sinclair Is, indeed, a
great artist.
The unity suggested by the collective
title of Katharine Fullerton Geroulds
book is realized in more than the sub
stance of the stories she tells. There
is here n rare uniformity Of high lit
erary quality, but also in the reading
should an authors short stories ever
be read consecutively?-a growing
consciousness Of uniformity of meth
! cd; Of formula, that isf almost of
cliche. Still, taken one at time, these
stories are so exceptionally powerful in
invention, they are carried out with
such exceptional grip, they are so adj
mirably we'll written, that one well
comes them with all the greater delight,
in a period OF renewed accusations oil
slipshod American craftsmanship, as
the work of an American author. These
are, indeed, tragedies Of vain service
and sacrifice, of vain rehabilitation
THE Case OF Paramore"-whlch Is
nothing but the oblation tardily poured
out at the feet Of one who does not
see, or, seeing, denies the vision; with
here a black drama like THE Wine Of
Violence" and elsewhere that most
original OF ghost stories, The Circular
Staircase" whose ghosts, the house
being new, are of the future, not the
past.
There is plenty Of variety in Richard
Dchans twenty-six stories. The Brit
ish army and navy, the law and medi-
cine, aviation and exploration have
been drawn upon for plots and charac-
tiers, WlIn, OF course, WOihch ~ Hi"'S"
the men. There is some drama here
and some comedy, bits Of life's irony
and inventions which, prove that fiction
may be stranger than fact. There Is
the tale Of the changelings, for in
stance. Love and marriage-and sep
aration and divorce-a bit OF intrigue
here and there, the world Of the period
ical short story Is fully represented.
Some Of these tales are little more than
expanded anecdotes; others have con-
siderable substance The book has no
more serious purpose than that OF pro-
ylding light entertainment. but 1t serves
it's purpose well.
The sixteen stories by as many au-
thors selected from the pages OF ths
Forum" represent the respectao's
average. rather than the best thas
America can produce to-day" as the
slip cover OF the volume asserts. Most
OF them cling to the surface OF lite;
they add nothing to our knowledge or
understanding or Interpretation OF 1t;
their authors are mainly concerned
with paraphrases OF its familiar as
meets but here and there one strikes
deeper, IL not an original note. as does
/ T Nilsson Laurvik in THE Brass Can
,,-.., - "a Tapoos Marie Honper In