The sun., 1919-10-12

~ INT cOhi VI lAONSA
- in the opaque wells of mysterious
essences, is a. resistIess goad that
spurs the human mechanism on through
undecipherable ways. To each one this
desire takes some particular forrn-some
concrete ambition wherein is crystallized
the multifarious urges that send man from
problem to problem. Dreamer, soldier,
cleric, mysteriarch, laborer, drab, each
one has his or her intimate desire, but
through all these many and apparently
conflicting ambitions there runs one gilt
;ering thread of unity, a common purpose
that serves as the core Of all intellectual
and manual endeavOr.
The wish for money, for fame, for per-
sonal liberty, for love, even for hate, is
but the outer semblance of single mani
festation of the spirit. 1t is the intention
of Alexander Black to garment in tichonal
form a discussion of this urge in The
Great Desire. Whether he has brought to
The subject a deepness, sincerity and 8
proper abnegation Of plot-opportunism, is
open to question; but there can be no
doubt as to the qualities of his book-a
clever and distinctive novel. The book Is
a comment on life in some ways, some
what intensive presentation Of American
existence Just before and during Americas
entrance into the great war.
Arson Grayl, rather intellectual but
often bewildered young writer, serves the
author as the figure by which he pursues
the. great desire through the crowded and
heterogeneous streets. of the City of the
Successfully Single, in other words, New
York. Arson is a cripple, hunchback;
but his misfortune hardly stands in the
way of his eager search for the secret that
makes life worth living. Making explicit
the ways of the world and bringing him
into close contact with the conflicting
ambitions that from superficial appear
ances cause the great desire to recede
into nothingness are a number Of per-
sonages-his sister Sarah, Laura Sherrick,
Robert RIDLEY, Mark Zorn. There are
others Of lesser significance who yet have
their little moment and serve as stepping
stones to the inevitable end.
II.
Arson and Sarah come to New York
and make their home with an aunt who
is both spiritually and corporeally Of
generous dimensions. The young man is
gathering material for a book which is
to be called Eyes, you have guessed it)
The Great Desire. A study of mankind is
the only way to make this possible and
Anson goes forth with that eager ac-
quisitive mind that discovers copy" in
every person he meets. There is a rich
aunt, not the one he lives with but an
other whose home is on Park avenue,
and she serves as an exemphication of
certain type of humanity. Just what her
desire is remains but family limited at, but
it is patent that riches do not satisfy her;
she must bend her endeavors to worths
causes. There is RIDLEY, son of rich
man and a gambler, who has risen above
himself and who is also looking for some
thing in life. Then there is Zorn, the
mysteriarch, whose discovery Of the great
desire serves as the climax to the book.
Zorn is an absorbing creation, an i'm
agined character with the breath Of life
in him but with an added and lifted
significance He is wisdom inearnate
with the fulness of many experiences to
puide him TO his convictions.
After Arson and his sister have settled
in New York with Aunt Paul it is not
many days before they have a concrete