Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-11-05

novels of South Africa-"The Bywon-
ner." to name a case in point. The title
covers this incident completely A
commonplace man has acquired the
habit of taking on wives. without law
full recognition of a right to do so.
One in England. another in South
Africa and in the same locality quite
promising overtures toward anotner
one-these are the matrimonial achieve
ments and ambitions Of this particular
son of Solomon. The main lines of in :
cident in this marital maze are spread
in Africa, but without the writer's &C
customed skill in evoking the capt.
waiting atmospheres of South AFRICA
without her usual sympathy with the
curious undercurrents of life in that
quarter. In word. 1t is n common
place story, both in it's substance and
in it's manner. To be sure, at the last
moment the writer gives chance FOR
character, such of this as there is. to
rise above the level of every days triv-
ial activities. but there has been no
serious preparation for this. so the ef-
feet OF this eleventh-hour delivery OF
a character problem is to dissipate
what interest the reader may have had
in this record of surface events by an
unjustifiab1e penetration into the deep
er layers of existence.
SOCIAL LIFE IN ENGLAND: 1870
1850. BY F. J. Foakes jackson.
New York: The Macmillan Company.
These essays picture the social life
Of England during the last half OF the
eighteenth century and the first half OF
the nineteenth. The writer makes use
of the diaries Of John Wesley as the
source from which he draws, not only
the career Of this conspicuous hgure
in English life. but as the material also
from which he constructs general pic
ture of the social England OF that
period Among these various pictures
are those of middle-class and peasant
life, and university life, the last taken
from Cummings "Reminiscences of Cam
bridge" Conspicuous personalities of
the time are made the subjects or spe-
cial studies, statesmen and leaders Of
society dominating here. A very ex-
cellent chapter on Dickens and Thack-
cray employs the familiar works of these
novelists to illustrate the social life
of the middle Of the last century. Given
originally as lectures. these essays pre-
serve the easy and attractive fnfor-
mality Of their first appearance In this
country. 1t Ia an admirable book for
to warm up history and to inform lit
erature.
THE ROGUE,s MARCHs shams and
verities in History and BfograPhys
Or, Do You Know Great Man
when You See Him, and II So. by
What SiEnsf
If the lady known as History were
reviewing this book. she might remind
it's author that his diagnosis or man
has already been recorded on stone.
papyrus, yellum and typewriter, and
that 1t Is only his own stark realism
which gives to his repetitions the sur
prising freshness of news. That man
is the same today as in the SEED
time of his creation Is the worlds old
est fact and doubtless its most accu-
rate one. That he will not admit that
sarneness is as anciently true. Mr..
Greusel holds history responsible for
mans self-deception: From age to age
it has been the practice of history
mongers to fiatter our pride by telling
US how great we were. not how low we
sunk: till we have come to believe
that history is not record of mems
little ways. but of the doings Of demi-
gods. This peculiar lying type
of writing has nightly pleased man
in times gone by. but the lid was Off
when the great war burst into fury:
no longer could man conceal from him
self the essentials of his nature"
'In plain words. we have been writ
ing history in such way tnst, IN el
rogue's march wherein man has DELHI
erately presented himself as poseur.
Tho great war has forced US
to revise our pretonsions and return to
earth" Its unparalleled butcheries are
citfd In proof Of mans buncombe claim