Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-03-19

jvI murder NJ :, chic down.
right fashion that Ger
trude Atherton's new mystery mover
opens. And Dave Balfame himself IS
the one toward whom his wires homl-
cidal intent is directed. Not long after,
surely enough Balfame is shot down
from an ambush of his own lawn. Be
yond this point Mrs. Atherton's story
opens out into something over three
hundred pages of justification. mar
rowing at this length to a final DIS
closure that has hardly a shred or
plausiblity to sustain it. No. Mrs
Ralfame did not kill her husband. There
is really nothing in this woman to DO
murder with. Ambition to maintain
her leadership in the small society OF
Suburbia. to control and direct the
inanities of the Friday Culture CLUB
about marks the top notch of the
lady's emotions. Murder could not lie
in this SNUG habitat. That Mrs. Bal
fame comes under suspicion Ut All is
due TO the overworked zeal of group
of rival reporters. each bent on making
SCOOP for his own paper. Nor is
Dwight Rush the guilty person. Mrs.
Anterior. by forcibly dragging him
into the role OF knight Grant to Mrs
Balfame, uses him as only another
blind alley up which to lure the sleuths
of crime. As for the real murderer
Oh never in the world. The plot of
the story is ramshacllle. II reaches its
weak climax by way of Zig-Gag of
forced situations and fortuitous hap
penings. The people here are patch
work. Mrs. Balfame herself IS non
entity in action and personality. The
writer goes to some PAINS to create
this impression Of her. iet. when she
talks she talks just like Mrs. Atherton,
with ar ease and cleverness no differ
ont from the writer's own way. Mrs.
Balfante is 4 poor relation. and a very
poor relation 1T that. to THE Conquer
or and much also of Mrs. Atherton's
other work.
ECHO: And Other Verses. BY Newbold
Moves. Boston: Sherman. French &
20.
Nobody-except Eudyard kipling-
can write poetry about steamships and
steam cars, about mines and factories
and feats of engineering. Since the
past fifty years have been packed to
the brim with mechanical inventions
applied to industry, it has followed
as a matter of course that the poet has,
within this period. been left without
Held No one, either. can read poetry.
except in the possession of hours of
leisure and a mind clear of the urgen-
cies of immediate existence. And so
IT has come about that the poet in this
half century has practically gone out
of business. half ashamed of gift that
stamped him something less than the
man of success. Latterly there have
come signs. however: that the poet and
Eether again. Rils and runHels and
rivulets of verse are trickling from the
press. feeling their way toward general
favor Young men are daring to write
a
daring to publish it. The volume in
hand is case in point. This is
slender book of verse-sonnets and
lyrics and songs. ballad. a hymn.
drama-that shows an easy facility in
the mechanism of verse. and keen
sense of the fitness that must exist be-
tween the form and its content. Feel
ing. fancy. imagery-all in good meas
ure-are here. flowing out. for the most
part. in love sonnets. Rather are these.
10 be exact, sonnets on the approaches
-outh is ever seeking to fulfill it's own
isions and dreams. Like The VAL
hyries' Ride. few of these poems
come in vigorou. rush of feeling and
movement Kit Marlowe" is a fine re-
capture of the spirit and mood of the
old days at the Mermaid Tavern. The
best of these verses, however. is the
initial one, Echo" a delicate wistful
little drama that. in its soft coloring
and grace of FORM is like a seasheil
Nnd like the shell il murmurs in I'M
dertones of unexplained things. The
really significant thing brought out by
this verse is the fact of sensitive
flexible medium. ready to expand to the
measure OF the writer's maturer pow
crs.
r,TIE>CE WORTH: Psychic Mys-
terry. By casper s. Ycst. New York:
Henry Holt q 20.
If one were to dip directly into the
substance Of this book, ignoring its
explanatory parts. he would naturally
assume that he had CHANGED upon re-
Vtva1 of the old writings Of one Pa
thence Worth. Here is "A miscellany Of
literary stuff-poems- stories, dramas,
,parabIes, the toss and catch of read Y
conversation, ma Xims and epigrams.
Much of this work is of admirable
quality. Some OF il reaches high lit
.erary excellence None of it is poor
II Is. besides. all of a piece In its dis
tInct personality. Phrased throughout
IN the English OF two and a half CEN
turtles ago. the themes also partake in
the main of interests belonging to that
period. The whole is saturated in an
atmosphere of quaint srchaism
Vow. so far as is known. this is the
first appearance of Patience Worth in
any time or place. This Is the "psy-
chic mystery" this appearance OF Pa
ttence Worth. by proxy so to speak
through the action of another person
This is the point when one must In
order 10 get his bearings in the matter
consult with the editor of this volume
From him comes the story of Patience
Worth. Upon a July evening in 1913'
he says, two women OF st. Louis sat
with a ouija board upon their knees
some time before this a friend had
aroused their interest in this unfath.
enable toy. and they had since whiled
sWay many an hour with the inscrut
able meauderIngs of the art-ShapeG
pointer. Upon this night the pointer
suddenly became endowed with an un.
usual agility. and with great rapidly
presented this introduction: Many
moons ago l lived. Again I come
Patience Worth my name" That was
the beginning. Since then volumes have
accumulated from Patience Worth, who
works by way of one woman alone
Mrs. John II. Curran of St Louis. wifi,
of former Immigration commissions
OF Missouri Mr.. Yost, editorial direct Oh
of tho St Louis Globe-Democrat 1.
the editor of this volume. All that Mr.
fost sets out to do In this case is t.
present the facts and to vouch for theii
authenticity Certain phases of thi,
phenomenon. however. set IL In a clas
by Itself. They are of a nature to at
tract attention and stimulate investi
cation. One of these is the quality o
Patience Worth herself-her intellect
her varied gifts. the range of he
knowledge. Another il the high char
acter and standing of her medium. Mrs
Curran. Another still is the simpI
and natural conditions, free from any
thing like the trance state, unde
which Mre. Curran transcribes tn
thoughts of Patience Worth. At tn
close of the book the mystery" Is a