Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-07-18

| to readers here three whimsical and
delightful stories taken from the
acknowledged masterpiece of this
Swiss poet and romancer. The first
OF these, typical of the two othcl
az well is The Three Decent
Combmakers.'' This is the adventure
of three workmen who conspired
against one another to win the hand
OF the washwoman's daughter. her
self an heiress. in way of speaking.
and a delicious blend OF pTetentious
spinsterhood. The comedy is as en-
gaging today As it could have been
upon its appearance fifty years ago
The grasp of local effects along the
puts in the shade much of the dull
and pernickity realism of modern
fiction. The enjoyment of Gottfried
in his own make believe still fairly
chuckles in these crowded adven-
lures to win the hand and fortune
of the fair lady. The pages look
bit heavy and unsociable. as page
long paragraphs are bound to make
any story appear. Happily. this is
only an appearance, for one laughs
his way continuously through these
simple and highly humorous accounts
of village life fifty years ago in a
still sleeping corner of Switzerland.
sketch of Gottfried keller's'9 life
and work prepares the reader, in part,
for the enjoyment that, lies in the
MARY MARIE. BY Eleanor H. Por-
ter, author of Just David" etc.
Illustrations by Helen Mason
Crosse Boston: Houghton Mifflin
Company.
This is the diary of Mary Marie.
The little girl is Mary" to her aus
tere father. who appears to have no
real interest this side the stars. upon
which he is great authority. To
her pretty joy-loving mother she is
Marie" The diary takes its start
when Mary Marie is thirteen. That is
the time when very odd something.
called divorce. sends the mother back
to her father in Boston. leaving
Mary's father to the happy compan-
To Mary Marie falls the hard task
of being mothers little girl for six
months in the year and then of turn
ing sQuarely about to be fathers Mary
for the remaining six months. To the
safe intimacy of her diary she con-
fdes both the difficulties of her Mary
existence and the joyous excitement
OF being Marie in the happy Boston
home of her mother. 1t is on the
whole pathetic little story. though
never for a moment is Mary Marie
conscious that she could be an OBJ
amusement that the free condolences
create there wells up continuously
the unhappiness that falls upon the
child by way of this document, this
order of the court, that imposes upon
her the bewilderment of a divided
allegiance and a two-part existence.
In this respect the little story *
one of those sermons that breaches
itself out Of one of the commonplaces
of life. One laughs along the way
here. but there is nothing to laugh
at, really. To be sure, at the end
the author. in Difference to the reader
a nd out of sheer affection for Mary
unhappy beginning, but she does not
do this till she has worked out, in
telling fashion. the sorrowful effect
of divorce upon the children of the
separated family. Mary Marie has Sc
captivated the reader that he for
gives the author for working the
miracle of reyiving an affection that
life.
SOME OF Us ARE MARRIED. By
Mary Stewart Cutting, author OF
Just for Two etc. Frontispiece
by William Caffey. New York:
Doubleday, Page & Co.
A dozen short stories, more or less,
about married folks. Now folks that
are happily married, do not. as a rule
1t is only when they are miserably
married that the public sits up to
take notice of them and read about
them Mrs. Cutting is not going to
let the matter go that way. There
is story charm in happy married
of she submits the following tales
A kind. of reformer. you see. And
these are good stories. brisk and
humorous, sometimes. And. all the