The sun., 1918-09-01

September Magazines
By DOROTHY SCARBOROUGH.
THERE are few distinctive stories
l. in the September magazines, few
whose craftsmanship gives one pleasure,
whose feeling seems sincere and sponta-
reous. There are stories in plenty that
are fairly well written from the point of
technique, but not many that appear eH-
pressive of genuine emotion.
Most of the sentiment seems worked up
for the market, most of the humor remote
from real life. In general the war stories
are particularly unimpressive, giving the
effect of industry and of commercial de-
sire to meet a popular demand. Weak, in
effective fiction is especially out of place
now.
The Last of the Argonduts, by Lee Fos-
:er Hartman, in Harper's, is an admi-
rable story of romantic adventure, full of
dramatically tense situations. The char
aeters are rough and lawless men, in
scenes wherein the violence of nature
matches the unrestraint of mans passions.
The Man With the Hands, by Katharine
Buell., in the Metropolitan, has little merit
of plot, for the plot structure is slight.
But it has atmosphere and true feeling.
The setting is made visible and actual. We
see distinctly the hospital with Ward 1872.
its doctors, nurses and patients.
Through the greater part of the narra-
tive "the man with the hands" appears a
minor character, and we wonder why he
should give the title to the story. But at
the last the subtle relation is brought out
clearly and emphatically. We see that
not the Irish soldier who dies and is out
of his misery, but the silent poilu, who
must live on, is the important figure.
The Inpisible Diuorce, by Leila Burton
Wells, in the American, is effective be-
cause of its truthfulness to life. This sad
little story of success, an incident in the
life of Mr.. James Reading Ryder and his
wife, Mrs. Jimmy, has deal of human
pathos. At first it seems rather like q
conventional story of young married love
and a temporary struggle with poverty,
but there is more at the last, revelation
of the secret workings of a woman's heart
The final paragraph makes us pause to
wonder how many invisible divorces there
may be among apparently happy and sue
cessful welded couples. ..
4 Fair Exchange, by Dorothy Garfield,
in Ereybody's, is the story of AN Ameri-
can in France. 1t is not war story, but an
example of business fiction. 1t deals with
the contrasted methods and ideals Of
America and France in the matter Of
trade. A proposition that apparently
comes to nothing proves of great psychic
logic value to the American business man
and the FrNchman with whom he wishes
10 form partnership. Only an American
who has lived in France colld understand
enough of the contrast IN types to write
this sympathetic story.
Dorothy Garfield has another good
story associated with French shop In
Pictorial Rerieu this month, La Phdr-
nacienne. Since her work in France for
he last two years Dorothy Garfield seems
more a citizen of Paris than of her Ameri-
can IHllsboro, Mass. Her recent stories
give us something more than stories-each
one imparting an idea more worth while
than the fiction that expresses it.
The Story Finton Heard at Mallorie,
by Katharine Prescott Moseley, IN
Gcribner's, is an interesting example Of